


Blindfold

by Spunky0ne



Category: Bleach
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-05
Updated: 2017-11-08
Packaged: 2018-12-11 16:13:03
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 9
Words: 29,051
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11717892
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Spunky0ne/pseuds/Spunky0ne
Summary: When Central 46 fails to honor a peace treaty with the quincies, Haschwalth takes Byakuya, Renji and Tetsuya hostage. Although the council refuses to negotiate for their release, Ichigo, Uryu and Kurushimi have other ideas. They strike out on their own, but find something surprising in Silbern palace





	1. Broken Promises

Byakuya sighed wearily and placed the last signed report into his outbox, then rose and stretched, catching Abarai Renji's eye from across the room as he headed, not for the door, but for the inner hallway that led to his quarters.

"Hey Taichou, are you staying here tonight?" he asked curiously.

"No," the noble informed him, "There is a meeting of the Central 46 council regarding the quincy officers, Bazz-B and Liltotto. As you know, Officer Gigi made a deal with the twelfth division taichou to assist him in understanding quincy anatomy and phisiology, so she avoided incarceration, but the fate of the other two hasn't been decided."

"Yeah," Renji said, his eyes reflecting a measure of regret, "I heard about that. It's strange, isn't it? I thought they made some kinda deal too."

Byakuya nodded.

"The council was in negotiation with the acting leader of the quincies, Haschwalth Jugram, who was given command after Ishida Uryu abdicated his position as quincy crown prince and returned to the living world. They were reported to have reached an agreement, but for unknown reasons, the council then reversed their decision and continued to hold the two."

"I visited Bazz-B earlier," Renji admitted, "I've been keeping him company during the trial. He told me that the council had been trying to manipulate the quincies into allowing us to use their method of entry into the shadows."

"I suspect that is the sticking point in their negotiations," Byakuya acknowledged.

"Right," Renji agreed unhappily, "It's a bad situation, because giving us entry leaves the quincies vulnerable to our forces if they attack..."

"However, the council wants our ability to enter their territory to act as a deterrent to them ever attacking us as they did in the recent war."

"I can understand both sides of that," Renji said, shaking his head, "Bazz does too. Both sides have a logical argument. I mean, our military did almost completely annihilate the quincies before. They only survived because they escaped into the shadows."

"And during the most recent conflict, the quincies did launch a devastating attack that killed even larger numbers of shinigamis, as well as our king," Byakuya added, "There are, as you say, logical arguments on both sides. Haschwalth Jugram argued that he has already promised to maintain only what military is needed to protect his people within the shadows. I think many among the councilors are reluctant to merely take his word for it or to trust the signed document he offered."

"Well," Renji mused, "even Bazz-B kinda understands because Ywach wasn't known for even keeping to the agreements that he did make. The guy even backstabbed his own."

"Which erodes the confidence of the councilors holding Officers Bazz-B and Liltotto's fates in their hands," Byakuya concluded.

"It's a real mess," Renji said unhappily, "I get the council's worries, but I feel sorry for Bazz-B and Liltotto. They did attack us in the beginning, but when they realized what a deceptive bastard Ywach was, they tried to take him down. They're the reason we were able to break into the royal realm."

"That is the reason they were not given a death sentence," Byakuya reflected, "but they are caught now in between the quincy regent's desire to protect his people and the Central 46 council's desire to protect ours."

"Damn," Renji sighed, shaking his head, "I hate this."

"Would you like to accompany me to the meeting?" Byakuya asked, noting his colleague's agitation, "You are welcome to join Tetsuya to add extra security for me during the meeting. It is certainly warranted, given the current unrest."

"Tetsuya's going with you?" Renji asked, looking surprised, "I thought Kuri-kuri had him locked up at Shima adobe cause he's pretty far along, carrying their twins."

"He is," Byakuya agreed, "but Tetsuya was his usual stubborn self, insisting on attending to my protection personally until this matter is resolved. He promised Kurushimi that as soon as the council concludes a deal with the quincies and he's sure I'm not in danger, he will turn his duties over to another staff member."

"Hmm," Renji mused, "Do you think he'd feel more comfortable if I helped out with security while he's having the kids?"

Byakuya arched a fine eyebrow and nodded.

"Now that you mention it, I think he would view that favorably. He does trust your instincts as well as he trusts his own, as you already act as one of my most capable protectors."

"So, do you wanna ask him about it?"

"After the meeting," Byakuya decided, "I would say before, but there just isn't time. We need to leave as soon as possible if we are going to arrive there before they begin."

"No problem. I'm ready to go," Renji said, falling in with him and waiting as he changed from his uniform into a formal kimono.

The two left the sixth division and were met outside by a blue-eyed man who looked similar to Byakuya, but had a more delicate look to his body and had lovely, sapphire eyes. He wore the dark navy blue uniform of the Kuchiki house guards and sat astride a tall black Arabian stallion. A lovely paint stallion stood at their side with his ears perked towards Byakuya.

"Hello Tetsuya," Byakuya greeted his cousin, "Arashi, Ikazuchi."

"Byakuya-sama," Tetsuya said, returning his greeting.

"Renji will be joining us for the meeting," Byakuya informed his lovely cousin, "I've asked him to join you in seeing to my safety."

"I think that's a good idea," Tetsuya said approvingly, "This is a very important meeting, and there are a lot of people watching closely to see what the council will decide."

"My thinking also," Byakuya said, feeling a touch of relief at his cousin's easy acceptance of the added assistance.

"Not to say you don't kick ass, even as knocked up as you are," Renji chuckled, moving closer and making Tetsuya's smile widen as he gently patted the younger noble's noticeable baby bump.

"Oh, no offense is taken. I assure you," Tetsuya answered affably, "In fact, this will be the last of my security duties I will undertake before I begin my leave."

"I am relieved to hear that, watashi no itoko," Byakuya confessed, "I do value your dedication to my protection, but I would not want you to be hurt, especially now."

"I understand," Tetsuya assured him, "and knowing that Renji-san will be protecting you in my place is a comfort."

Byakuya climbed onto Ikazuchi's back and offered Renji a hand, pulling the redhead up behind him. The two horses, broke into a trot and headed quickly for Central 46. They arrived a short time later, and slid down off the horse's backs, then crossed the narrow bridge that led to the compound's entrance. The group was searched and their identification confirmed, before they were waved on and passed through the compound's front doors.

"Hey, Byakuya, Tetsuya, Renji!" Ichigo's voice called from a short distance away, "Good to see you."

"It is good to see you also," Byakuya said, nodding in greeting, "Ichigo."

He paused, taking a closer look at the white clad youth that stood at Ichigo's side.

"Ishida Uryu," he greeted the quincy, "It is good to see you on your feet again. I was pleased to hear that the court had dropped the charges against you. I was concerned that they would be unwilling to do so."

"But they couldn't argue with the fact that he helped me take Ywach down," Ichigo said proudly, slipping his hand into Uryu's and squeezing it gently.

Uryu blushed.

"I just...did what I had to do," he said in a flustered tone.

"You did the right thing," Ichigo said, turning and stealing a quick kiss.

Uryu shoved him away.

"Don't do that in front of everyone!" he scolded the Shiba heir, "A lot of people still don't trust me. You don't want to give them a reason to have something against you!"

"Eh, shut up," Ichigo said off-handedly, "You know I don't give a crap what anyone else thinks."

"I know, but you should be careful here. That's all I'm saying," Uryu argued.

"Will you two lovebirds knock it off," Renji chided them, smirking.

"I think we should go inside," Byakuya suggested, "They're about to begin."

"Do you mind if I sit with you and your family, Byakurai?" asked a deep, accented male voice.

Tetsuya turned and broke into a beautiful smile.

"Kuri!" he greeted his handsome, Latino husband, embracing him and meeting him for a passionate kiss that left the two blushing.

"All right, enough already!" Renji complained, "You're making Taichou and me jealous here."

"You're free to kiss Byakurai so he won't feel left out," Kuri invited him jokingly.

"Ha ha, very funny," Renji huffed, scowling, "I think the Kuhciki elders would faint if I dared to kiss Taichou, not to mention I'd probably end up getting shredded by bladed petals to boot."

"Oh, I wouldn't hurt you for kissing me," Byakuya said, looking amused at the thought, "but I think you have...other interests, don't you, Renji?"

"Ooh, I sense a secret!" Kurushimi said, moving closer, "Who is it, Ren-Ren-nii? That other tattooed guy? The pretty one from Zaraki taichou's squad?"

"It's not your business. I'm not telling!" Renji snapped, "So, quit bugging me about it."

"I think it's time for us to go inside," Byakuya said, stopping their more casual banters.

"Saved by the bell," Renji sighed, rolling his eyes as he fell in on Byakuya's right, while Tetsuya followed on his left.

"I will be with Deripe and Mamà," Kurushimi informed Tetsuya, "I will see you after, Tetsu-hana. Stay out of trouble."

"I will try," Tetsuya chuckled, turning away and leaving him watching with affectionate eyes.

"We should go inside too," Ichigo said, giving Uryu a nudge.

"Are you really sure we should?" Uryu asked in a conflicted tone, "You know a lot of them still..."

"Yeah, a lot of them are holding a grudge against pretty much any quincy, but we're not going to stamp that out by having you hide away from them. We have to get in their faces and make them see who you are."

"Whatever you say, Ichigo," Uryu sighed resignedly, "I don't think it will change their minds, but..."

"Come on, will you?"

The gathered members of the noble families and their guests moved into the Central 46 chamber and took their places in the gallery and quieted as the sages began to enter through the chamber's upper door. They filed to their seats and sat down, while one elder sage moved to the head of the chamber and banged a heavy gavel to bring the meeting to order.

"This meeting of Central 46 will come to order," his voice boomed, "Fumio, you will read the agenda."

A younger male sage stood and cleared his throat softly.

"The council greets Haschwalth Jugram, interim leader of the quincies," Fumio announced as the doors to the lower part of the chamber opened and Haschwalth entered, flanked by several quincy guards. They took up a position at a podium that stood in front of where Byakuya's group stood. A moment later, another lower door opened and Bazz-B and Liltotto were led in by two guards wearing white masks over their faces.

"Lord Jugram, you may begin your testimony," the grand councilor invited the quincy regent.

"I will make this simple," Jugram said solemnly, "We have bargained in good faith and one of our officers has agreed already to remain here and give you whatever information you wish about our anatomy and physiology. You have incarcerated the two elite officers who were not killed in the war. We have signed the peace treaty and agreed to halt all hostile actions against you. You agreed to return Officer's Bazz-B and Liltotto to us. You have no right to continue to hold them."

"I think we have a right to attend to the safety of our people," a female sage named Arisu insisted.

"She is right," a male sage by the name of Hiromasa agreed, "We have discussed this at length and we unanimously agreed that we will never have true safety from your kind until we have entrance into the shadows."

"That was not part of the pact we signed!" Jugram said firmly, "If you want to negotiate that, then you will need to do so independently of our former agreement. You can't go back now on what you agreed to in writing."

"That was a preliminary agreement, meant just to end the hostilities!" Hiromasa snapped as several other voices rose in agreement, "You were well aware that there could be amendments. Your side could have made some as well."

"I understand that sometimes there are a adjustments after to refine the agreement," Haschwalth acknowledged, "but you are treading on dangerous ground. You can't expect us to just open our borders to the ones who nearly destroyed our entire population!"

"You did a pretty damned good job on our population in this war," a sage named Aki accused him, "and you have easy entrance here. Even now, you have us at a disadvantage. We need some assurance you can't just come out of the shadows and start attacking us by surprise again!"

"We have the advantage of positioning to do damage," Haschwalth admitted, "but you still have far greater numbers. Both our sides have some advantage and something to inhibit us."

"I don't think we have enough to warn you off for long!" Hiromasu said scathingly, "You know that, so you will try to wear us down."

"I assure you," Haschwalth said calmly, "Our people want peace as much as yours do. We both want the same thing, peace and reassurance that we can avoid another blood war. Just give us our officers and we will leave you in peace. Keep them at your own risk. If you refuse to honor the pact we have made, you are going to create another war!"

The grand councilor slammed his gavel down viciously.

"Haschwalth Jugram!" he shouted sternly, "If you have come here to accuse and threaten us, you are risking war, yourself! We will not tolerate such belligerence from a people we have defeated. But if you refuse to adhere to the demands of the victors in the war, we can certainly give you a taste of incarceration here to wear down your willfulness. Guards, you will take the quincy regent into custody!"

"Don't dare to lay hands on me or my men!" Jugram warned the grand councilor, "We will consider it an act of dishonor and hostility, as we have come here under a symbol of truce!"

"You barged in here and started making demands you shouldn't be making, considering you were the losers in the war!" Aki shouted, inciting a number of others to shout in agreement.

"I am warning you one last time," Haschwalth said, glancing at his guards, "Do not come near us, or you will give us no choice but to defend ourselves!"

The grand councilor shouted another command to the guards, who closed in on the quincy delegation. Haschwalth and his guards acted swiftly, engaging their Hirenyaku. Four quincy guards disappeared and reappeared behind Bazz-B and Liltotto, slashing their bonds and cutting down their handlers. Haschwalth and two guards reappeared suddenly in the gallery, behind the nearest of the nobles seated there. The quincy regent held a long knife at Byakuya's throat, while guards did the same to Tetsuya and Renji. He lowered his voice and spoke into Byakuya's ear.

"We are only trying to escape with our officers they have promised to release. Don't fight us and we won't hurt you or your comrades."

Sensing the futility of trying to fight or disarm the quincy regent, Byakuya held perfectly still, his eyes on his pregnant cousin.

Haschwalth glared defiantly up at the grand councilor.

"You have broken our agreement, so you may consider us your enemies again. We will negotiate with you, but now it will be for the release of the hostages we are taking with us. We have the leader of your greatest clan and people close to him. If you want them back alive, then you had best reconsider your choices!"

"Damn you, you lying, cheating quincy bastard!" yelled a furious sage, launching himself at the quincy regent, "GET THEM!"

The Central 46 guards moved to close in on Haschwalth and the others.

"You have nowhere to go," the grand councilor said solemnly, "You should free Kuchiki Byakuya and the others now and we can continue our negotiations."

"I won't negotiate with liars!" Haschwalth snapped, "We will contact you with the terms for the release of the hostages!"

Guards ran at the quincies from all directions, but as they moved, a blackness opened up near each, and the quincies stepped into it, dragging their prisoners with them.

"Tetsu-hana!" Kurushimi howled, flash stepping toward the escaping quincies, then reeling as explosions of powerful reiatsu forced him back.

"Jugo, don't do this!" Bazz-B shouted, "You're just going to..."

"Go!" Haschwalth ordered the others, dragging Byakuya along with him.

He lowered his voice and spoke again into Byakuya's ear.

"Do not resist in any way, or I will have your fukutaichou and your cousin killed!"

Byakuya nodded briefly and moved with the quincy regent as the shadows curled around them.

"You bastards! You won't get away with this!" one of the sages howled furiously.

The council sages and the nobles watching in horror from the gallery could only stare in dismay as the quincies and their hostage disappeared and the blackness dissipated.


	2. Secrets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While under the influence of interrogation drugs, Byakuya suffers flashbacks of a horrifying encounter with a man who knows a terrible family secret.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to Vi for her kind comments! I have several more chapters that will be along soon.
> 
> Thanks also to Shima-Taicho31 on fanfiction.net for letting me use her character, Shima Kurushimi!

Byakuya began to feel awareness returning, but his arms and legs felt too heavy to move and his head spun dizzily. He vaguely remembered the blonde-haired quincy regent speaking into his ear and explaining the need for him to be made unconscious for a time, and a pair of malevolent eyes focusing on his and making everything go dark. His chest felt heavy as he managed slow, shaky breaths and felt sweat drops on his face, chest and arms. Pushing away his discomfort, he focused his attention on the words of the ones in the room with him. He couldn't feel Renji or Tetsuya's presences, so concluded the ones around him were all enemies.

"Don't damage him in any way," Haschwalth warned the others, "He is sure to have important secrets. But first, we need to know anything he has been told about the military and Central 46's intentions towards us. I want to know if he knew of any plan to attempt to trick and attack us."

"I will give him something to make him more willing to talk," a female voice offered.

"You can try," Haschwalth agreed, "but it may not work as high ranking military, especially their taichous, are probably prepared for that."

"We'll see about that," the woman said in a cocky tone.

"Just remember not to damage him," Haschwalth's voice said stridently.

"Can I damage the pregnant one?" the woman asked sarcastically, "He's been a pain in the ass, demanding to see this one and resisting until we threatened to abort his kids."

Anger swelled in Byakuya's chest, radiating outward and sending new life through his reluctant limbs. He lunged suddenly against his bonds, inciting panic in the enemies who attended him. He felt the bonds snap and threw himself in the direction of the one who had threatened his cousin. The women shrieked and Byakuya felt a needle plunge into his shoulder as he clumsily tackled her, bringing her to the ground and clenching a hand around her throat as he glared into her eyes, promising death. Raised voices filled the room and hands grabbed wildly at him as the woman gave a choked scream and the bones under Byakuya's fingers cracked. Byakuya's head swam as the drug she had injected began to take effect, then a sharp, electric jolt paralyzed him.

"Get her into the next room and don't let her die," Haschwalth snapped, kneeling beside the groggy noble where he had landed on the floor, "It's a good thing her blut didn't let her throat get completely crushed. He's grown much stronger."

Byakuya felt his senses fading and the air seemed to darken around him, but Haschwalth's voice leaked in before he passed out entirely.

"Place Kuchiki Tetsuya in isolation. Allow only my personal healer inside."

Haschwalth's hand touched his face for a moment and Byakuya sensed his regret.

"You understand, it's critical for us to know if your leaders were planning to stab us in the back or if there are any with honor among them. But it was wrong of her to use those methods on one carrying children. Tetsuya won't be harmed...as long as you cooperate."

Byakuya slipped into blackness for a time, catching only stray bits of what was said to him and registering several more pinpricks in his arm.

"...told you he might be too resistant..."

"...any more might kill him..."

Then finally...

"Stop. We'll try something else later. It's enough," Haschwalth's voice said wearily, "Take him to my quarters."

"...heavy binding..."

The voices faded out completely and Byakuya dropped off into an uneasy slumber that spawned a flurry of dark, hazy dreams, some that made no sense to him at all, but some that resonated dangerously. His heart quickened as he felt something tighten around his wrists and he was drawn off into one of the more resonant dreams.

_He sat quietly at a table by the window, where he could observe the white birds that flew over the lazy blue lake outside the little cabin he had gone to for his calligraphy lesson. Their soft cries floated in on the cool, sweet breeze, leaving him light hearted and content. He heard approaching footsteps, then a man's voice making a sound of approval._

_"That is...very good, Byakuya. Your calligraphy threatens to surpass mine."_

_"Thank you, Aizen taichou," he answered, setting the pen on the desk and standing._

_As he turned, he realized suddenly that the fifth division taichou's sword was in his hand and extended, tip down._

_"Will you have a look at this?" Aizen asked sedately, "Shatter, Kyouka Suigetsu."_

_Byakuya froze, unable to tear his eyes away from Aizen's sword as its power overcame his senses. His heart pounded at the feeling of betrayal that managed to remain with him, even as his body's senses were overcome._

_"In honor of your coming of age...I think it's time for another kind of lesson," Aizen said, sheathing his weapon and setting it aside, then moving closer to the stunned noble youth._

_Indignant anger flooded Byakuya's slender form, but couldn't seem to make it to the surface as Aizen wrapped an arm around his waist from behind and laid a line of biting kisses along the side of his throat. He tried to speak, but his mouth refused to obey him. His mind screamed as Aizen's dulcet voice sounded again._

_"You've become such a lovely young man, Byakuya," he complimented the youth, stroking his cheek lightly, "Your father would be so proud if he was still alive. But...unfortunately, he was in the wrong place at the wrong time and paid with his life. Still, you should be happy that he died with his secret untold. If anyone knew, then I think your family would lose what it holds most dear...isn't that right, Byakuya?"_

_"S-stop!" Byakuya managed, his voice quivering._

_"Such belligerence," Aizen said disapprovingly, "Do you want the world to know, little prince? That your father gave birth to you and your true father was...?"_

_"STOP!" Byakuya gasped, shuddering as Aizen's hand wrapped around his throat and tightened warningly._

_"Don't fight me. You know what I want, Byakuya."_

_Byakuya's jaw clenched and he shivered, but after a moment, he let out a breath and bowed his head in acceptance. He moved quietly with Aizen as the fifth division taichou led him to the bedroom then watched him with aroused eyes as he slowly removed his layers of fine clothing. When he stood naked, Aizen approached him and slipped a hand under his chin, raising his eyes so that theirs met._

_"You've been willful today," Aizen chided him, "I think you need to be reminded how little your status means when you stand in front of me. Lie down."_

_He shoved the young man down onto the bed and climbed on after, turning Byakuya face down and placing a knee warningly on his lower back as he bound the youth's wrists and ankles tightly to the bed posts. Aizen moved so that he knelt between Byakuya's widespread thighs looking down at his exposed back and perfect bottom. His loins throbbed at the sight and a cruel smile overtook his deceptively gentle face. He slowly removed his glasses and picked up a leather riding crop that laid on the nightstand._

_"Discipline is critical," Aizen said calmly, "Isn't that what you young princes are taught? I know you're not used to being dominated by a mere peasant, but you should get used to it. Someday, I am going to be the king you serve, Byakuya. In the meantime, I am forced to steal these moments to sustain myself, so that I can swallow the indignation of the nobles' disrespect. Here, at least, is a noble son who knows he's no better than me. Just remember," he said, snaking the end of the riding crop over Byakuya's white bottom, then stinging the pale, unspoiled flesh with a hard swat, "who is in control."_

_He watched a red welt rise on the youth's pale skin and smiled._

_"Such a lovely young man," Aizen purred, teasing Byakuya's nether region, then quickly punishing his back with another vicious strike, "and so devoted, though I know your devotion doesn't belong to me. You want to keep that secret, right?"_

_He laid down the crop and stretched out along Byakuya's side, nuzzling his cheek and caressing his vulnerable bottom where he had marked it._

_"You would do anything to protect Soujun's good name...wouldn't you?"_

_Byakuya felt the elder man's dampened fingers slide down his back, sending horrid shivers down his spine. The fingers ran slowly around his tight entrance, then pushed inside roughly. Byakuya closed his eyes and turned his head away. He barely heard the insulting words, hardly felt the hasty preparation and was numb by the time Aizen's body claimed his and treated him to a first hand reminder of the fifth division taichou's secret cruelty._

_He staggered out of the cabin several hours later, running for home on shaky legs, knowing better than to say anything. He knew already that they couldn't see the marks that were left behind, and that, by the next morning, he wouldn't remember ever having them either._

Byakuya sucked in a deeper breath and opened his eyes, reeling as he registered the tightness at wrist and ankle that incited an instant reaction. He tore madly at his bonds, his eyes uncomprehending and Haschwalth's voice a distant humming as he fought blindly to escape. He would have known it was an exercise in futility if his mind had been clear, but too close to the shattering nightmare, he had little cognizance of the damage he was doing to himself as he struggled.

"You need to stop," Haschwalth's voice commanded him, as Byakuya felt the bed move and the quincy regent extended a hand over him.

Byakuya's body froze in place, except for his chest, which continued to rise and fall harshly as his wild eyes tried to make sense of his surroundings. He felt a weight press down on him until movement beyond more quiet breathing was impossible. His body was slowly forced into a calmer state as Haschwalth's hands flared with power and began to soothe the places where the bindings had cut into him. Byakuya glared, barely registering what was happening as Haschwalth gently lifted a bloodied wrist and carefully healed it, then moved on to the other, before healing each torn ankle as well.

"I would ask what manner of dream made you react like this," the quincy regent commented, "but you are in no state for answering questions. I am curious. of course, but I am not interested in forcing out your personal history. I only need to know if the Gotei 13 and Central 46 were planning this betrayal all along, and if they have any intention of maintaining peace. You can understand, I'm sure, the need for us to know this. I didn't want to go about it this way, but what happened in Central 46 made it necessary."

"T-tetsuya? Renji?" Byakuya hissed angrily.

"They haven't been harmed."

"I w-want to see them!"

Haschwalth gave him a regretful look.

"I am sorry. I can't allow that," he said, frowning, "You know that if they learn where you are and what your circumstances are, it will tease them into trying to rescue you. I am not wanting to get caught up in their attempts to free you. I want information, Byakuya. I want you to answer my questions, then we can see what I can offer you as far as additional comforts and eventual freedom."

"Y-you aren't going to let me go," Byakuya challenged him, glaring up at him through hateful eyes, "I have nothing to gain by g-giving in to you!"

"What about Tetsuya?" Haschwalth reminded him, "If you can save him by being cooperative, shouldn't you at least try to be cooperative?"

"You promised we wouldn't be hurt if I didn't resist you taking me," Byakuya reminded him.

"And you haven't been hurt...except for what injuries you sustained in your own struggles. You haven't been tortured, and you won't be."

"Will they?" Byakuya snapped furiously.

"They aren't the ones who have the information I want," the quincy regent said in an unruffled tone, "I only brought them because of the effect they have on you. You wouldn't have come quietly except for the threat to them."

"So, you will use them to force me to answer you?" Byakuya concluded.

"We haven't touched them yet," Haschwalth countered, "I hope we don't have to, but that is not in my hands. It's in yours."

"Then, you are threatening them."

"I will do what I must."

"So will I," Byakuya said coldly.

"That is why I allowed Alize to drug you," the quincy regent explained, "I felt that if it was possible to take what I needed without resorting to threats, it would be better. Believe it or not, I don't want a war with the shinigamis, Byakuya. I want peace."

"I know what kind of peace you want!" Byakuya seethed, his grey eyes flashing, "Your forces demonstrated that when you did not even wait the five days you gave us, but attacked without warning, slaughtering thousands of fighters who only sought to protect their home! I felt it in the viciousness As Nodt employed when he tortured me with my own power before nearly ending my life! Again and again, your soldiers proved their ruthlessness of the quincies, and their pure hatred of us!"

"I know that is the face we showed under our former king Ywach's rule, but I would expect someone like you who witnessed his death, would know that our people were trapped into what happened. We are trying to extract ourselves from the former king's shadow. We do want peace. But we need information to guide our steps. You are our key to that, now that communications have broken down."

"And you think I will help people, who would threaten my pregnant cousin? I hope you haven't put him in any kind of cell. Tetsuya can't bear confinement. He will tear himself apart. You will probably have to keep him unconscious, and you will need to use kido. He is with child and cannot be given drugs as I was."

"I know all of that," Haschwalth assured him, "although I didn't know about his aversion to cells. I'm glad you told me. I will have his handlers keep him unconscious, and they will use kido to do so. But it would assist us to have more information about him. We have detailed files on all of the high ranking officers in the Gotei 13, as well as the most powerful sons and daughters of the great clans. Strangely, this young man is not mentioned anywhere in the intelligence that we have gathered. This doesn't make sense, considering he is your personal bodyguard. I would expect such a young man would have a bankai, placing him among the ranking members of your family."

"Tetsuya is of mixed blood," Byakuya admitted, "And as he is my protector, it was decided that he should not serve in the military. His abilities are never spoken of publicly, so as to put those who would harm me at a disadvantage. I am not going to discuss Tetsuya's abilities with you."

"I understand your refusal to do so, of course, but you must understand that if you will not answer my questions, I must extract the information in other, more unpleasant ways."

"Another threat," Byakuya accused him.

"It is necessary," Haschwalth said firmly, "Like you, I am only doing what I must."

"And what have you done with Renji?"

"He is being handled by a capable quincy officer," Haschwalth assured him, "one under orders not to harm him unless he makes it necessary."

"You will excuse me if I don't find your promises even remotely reassuring. I felt the hatred in the hands that touched me before. As much as you order everyone that we are not to be harmed, you only have so much control, even here in your seat of power."

"That is temporary," Haschwalth insisted, "I am preparing to hold an election to establish a high lord to rule the quincies. We have done away with the title of king and replaced it with a return of the quincy noble houses and a high lord, chosen to coordinate them and compel them to work together. I will not be a king, but as no one wishes to oppose me, I will be the rightful leader soon. These are beneficial changes that I think will have a good effect on our relations with the shinigamis, but first, we must establish some level of trust."

"I don't think trust is possible as long as you are holding hostages and making demands," Byakuya said sternly.

He flinched as Haschwalth leaned over him and set a blindfold over his eyes, then strengthened the power of the restrictive field that surrounded him.

"Why is a blindfold necessary?" Byakuya asked, frowning, "What are you hiding from my eyes?"

"It is an added measure of protection," the quincy regent explained, "so that I can sleep next to you without concern for my safety."

"A mere blindfold will give you that much security? Even more than the reiatsu field that keeps me from moving?" the noble inquired uncertainly "Very odd..."

"This blindfold is more than it seems," Haschwalth said cryptically, "but you will see. Sleep now. The rigors of the interrogation were difficult for you, and as you gave us no answers, we must find another means of gaining the information we need. Think carefully about what you will do, Byakuya. It is not just the lives of you and your comrades at stake here."

XXXXXXXXXX

Ichigo and Uryu waited just outside the doors to the Central 46 chambers, their eyes intense and their faces determined.

"I wonder what's taking them so long," Ichigo complained, "They've been in there forever!"

"Well, they're diplomats," Uryu reminded his more impetuous lover, "They're not going to rush through this, especially while Byakuya's life is in danger and we're at risk of restarting the war."

"I just need to know what's going on. Byakuya and the others have been missing for more than a day now and we're all on edge about what might have happened to them while these guys were in there arguing! Kuri's in fits. He's been bugging me to get you to let him into the shadows. He knows you must know how to get in...and Uryu, he's not the only one thinking you're going to be useful that way. My dad's thinking we should get you out of the Seireitei, maybe go back to the living world. We probably need to warn your dad to be careful too. Haschwalth made a whole lot of trouble for everyone when he took hostages."

"I don't think he had much of a choice," Uryu speculated, "He needed something to keep the councilors from attacking as he freed Bazz-B and Liltotto."

"But he didn't have to take Byakuya and the others with them," Ichigo insisted, "He could have let them go."

"I agree, it's not a good sign," Uryu sighed, "If I had to guess, he's probably pumping Byakuya for information about what he knows, since he's not only a taichou in the military, he's also on the inside with the Central 46 council."

"We need to get in there and get him out."

"Maybe," Uryu said tentatively, "And I am willing to take you in, Ichigo. But only if we have some kind of workable plan, first."

"Yeah?" Ichigo said, smirking, "You want a plan? Here's the plan. We go in. We get Byakuya and the others and we get our asses out. How's that for a plan?"

"It sounds good to me," Kuri said, smirking at the annoyed look Uryu gave him as he joined them.

"Kuri-kuri," Ichigo said, shaking his head, "I thought you had to report in with your division to make plans in case of war."

"There isn't going to be any war," Kuri said darkly, narrowing his turquoise eyes warningly, "There won't be a war because we're going into that place and taking back what they stole from us!"

"Oh, now it's both of you wanting to just crash your way in there and grab them?" Uryu objected, "You two don't even know where they are. I don't know where they are!"

"Well, I'm sure we can figure it out as we go," Kuri said firmly, "Lead the way."

"I'm not leading anyone anywhere until we know what the council's planning and make a plan of our own that won't get them killed!" Uryu seethed, "You two are impossible! If you just barge in there...!"

Uryu fell silent as the door to the main chamber opened and Isshin exited, wearing a dark expression.

"Let me guess," Ichigo said, frowning worriedly, "it's not good news."

"No, it's not," Isshin confirmed, "The council has voted to refuse to negotiate with Haschwalth Jugram."

"What?" Ichigo mused, staring, "But what about Byakuya and the others?"

"I don't think they give a damn about the hostages," Kuri said scathingly, his hand gripping the handle of his sword until his knuckles turned white, "Have they received official demands from those bastards?"

"No," Isshin admitted, looking distressed at his own words, "We've received nothing from them since they left."

He turned a concerned eye on Uryu.

"Ichigo, you'll want to get Uryu out of here, and I'm going to ask you not to do anything while I keep trying to get the council to listen."

"What? Dad...!"

"Listen, okay? Kurotsuchi Mayuri has been drugging and interrogating the zombie quincy girl. He thinks he's onto how they open and close the gate into the shadows. They think they'll have it in another few hours and we'll be planning what they want to be an attack, but what I'm trying to convince them should be a rescue mission."

"They won't agree to a rescue mission," Kuri said firmly, "Their pride was attacked when the quincy abducted our people. They don't care about Byakurai, Ren-ren-nii and my Tetsu-hana. They just want to make that animal pay for insulting them."

"Then...it sounds like we need to make sure we get in there before they do!" Ichigo decided.

"Hey, I told you. Don't try anything crazy!" Isshin snapped.

"And I told you I'm not doing anything without a plan!" Uryu insisted.

"Then get planning," Ichigo said angrily, "because tonight, whether we have a plan or not, we're making our move!"


	3. Devil has a Heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Haschwalth observes an enticing memory while searching Byakuya's mind.

Renji heard the bedroom door handle turn and he focused his most scathing look of hatred at the offender entering the room.

"You lying bastards! Let me outta here!" he yelled as the door opened.

He froze and blinked in surprise as Bazz-B stepped into the room.

"You?" he demanded, "You're...?"

"Take it easy, Red," Bazz-B said, giving him a look of reproach, "I'm here to help."

"What the hell do you mean, here to help? Do you quincies know a fucking thing about being honorable? About keeping your goddamned word? Let me up, you asshole! I wanna see Byakuya! If those sons of bitches have hurt him, I'm gonna fucking kill you all!"

"Is this taking it easy?" Bazz said, rolling his eyes, "because if it is, you suck at it. Calm down, Red. Listen to me."

"You want me to listen to you, after what you did? They'd better not hurt Byakuya or Tetsuya or I'll fucking mess them up!"

"Okay, okay, you'll kill us if we hurt your friends. I got it, all right? Now, tone it down a little before you give yourself a fucking aneurism."

"What would you care?" Renji snapped angrily, "You motherfucking lying bastards don't..."

Renji's words disappeared and he went still and stared in confusion as Bazz-B leaned forward and kissed him forcefully.

"Stop it, okay?"

Renji blinked several times, the scowled.

"Oh, now you're going to use sex to dominate me? Well, bring it on. I'm not afraid of you!"

Bazz let out a frustrated breath.

"Man, sometimes you really are a moron, Red. Will you get a clue? I'm not going to rape you, although I wouldn't mind at all having sex with you, I am trying to keep you from getting yourself into more trouble. I know you heard me tell Jugo this wasn't a good idea. You and Byakuya were part of the group that was willing to overlook our differences and help us when we needed it. I owe you for that. I can't let you go right now, because if I do, then your taichou's still screwed. Jugo made me your handler. I'm just supposed to keep you quiet and out of the way. He doesn't care about you. He just wants whatever Byakuya knows. Once he has that, he'll probably negotiate with Central 46 for your release. Jugo may be pretty ruthless, but he's not like Ywach. He's honest and he doesn't want any more violence than there has to be to get the shinigamis to leave us alone."

"If he's so goddamned honest, then why's he taking fucking hostages, one of them pregnant!" Renji seethed, "If Tetsuya loses his baby..."

"Hey, stop it! No one's losing nothing, here. I told you, Jugo just wants to be sure that we're safe from the shinigamis. Come on, Red, you were there! You saw it. They were going back on their word and they were going to keep me, Gigi and Lil prisoners to try to force Jugo to give'm the keys to get into the shadows. You do remember it came out what they did to us last time? The shinigamis tried to fucking murder ever man, woman and child of the quincy race! You think taking a few hostages was wrong? We're fighting for our survival now."

"All right, fine. I get it," Renji huffed furiously, "I did hear it come down that there was a quincy purge. But you know, most of us in the ranks of the Gotei today weren't even alive when it happened. It was a long time ago and you know they covered up the whole thing so most shinigamis don't even know about it!"

"I don't know who the heck knows what," Bazz-B said, "but I know that your Central 46 wasn't on the up and up when they made the deal to end the war. They know we're beat and they could just leave us alone, now that we've signed the peace treaty and gone back into the shadows, but they want more. They want in here. Why? You don't think they're going to start talking about managing our military strength or some controlling shit like that?"

"What do you expect?" Renji mused, "You guys attacked us out of the fucking blue and murdered thousands of people! And the ones you killed, except for maybe Old Man Yama had never had anything against the quincies. They died not knowing why you guys were killing them. I know that Ywach screwed with you pretty badly. I get that. But it's going to take more than a peace treaty to make the people on our side trust any of you."

"That isn't a reason to go back on the deal they made and start making more demands."

"No, I agree, it's not," Renji sighed, "But that's Central 46 for you. It's hard to make sense of some of the things they do."

"You can say that again," Bazz-B agreed, squeezing Renji's bound hand, "Look, we kinda understand each other. I don't have a grudge against you and I don't think you're holding one against me either. Let's make an agreement, okay? And don't worry, I know you won't go back on your word."

"That's kind of a cheap shot," Renji complained.

"Sorry, couldn't help myself," Bazz-B chuckled, "So, here's the deal. You behave and Jugo will let me be your only handler. I'll go easy on you and I'll try to convince him to let you see your taichou to make sure he's okay. How's that?"

Renji gave him a skeptical look.

"Will you fucking let me up? I've been tied down since I got here and I need to pee and stretch my legs!"

"All right," Bazz laughed, shutting off the restraints that held him down, "Get up and take a leak. Just remember, you misbehave and Jugo will assign you a bruiser to work you over and lock you up and let you pee all over yourself. Got it?"

"Yeah, I've got it," Renji said off-handedly.

"Good," Bazz said, patting him on the face and making him scowl, "I knew you could be reasoned with."

"You call that reasoning? What? Are you trying to join Central 46's douche bag squad?"

"Now you're asking for it..."

"Just kidding," Renji snickered, "Thanks Bazz. I really have to pee."

"Go on," Bazz said, giving him a friendly shove, "Don't mess the floor."

He chuckled again as he watched the red-haired shinigami hurry towards the commode.

"Cute..."

XXXXXXXXXX

Even deep in sleep, Byakuya could feel the strange power of the blindfold that Haschwalth had placed over his eyes. It kept his mind in a continuous spin and caused him to amble into past arenas, reliving moments from that past or just invading his dreams.

 _But knowing that it's affecting me isn't enough to make it stop_ , he thought, fending off a tempting swirl of dizziness as his weariness worked to undo him, _I can't fight it forever. I know how to fight torture and drugs, but this is much more difficult..._

"Relax," Haschwalth's smooth voice instructed him, "There is a lot of aggravation in your heart. I understand. You have been captured by the enemy, and the stress of wondering about your comrades, fighting the drugs you were given and resisting this intrusion are beginning to overwhelm you. The blindfold won't hurt you, Byakuya. It is only a means to an end. I want to know what you know and I am going to get the information I want, no matter how much you resist. And I ask you, why are you resisting at all? You saw what those men did to us. We had an agreement signed and only needed to take our comrades with us and leave, but those lying snakes broke their word right in front of you. I know you are aware. You watched it practically alongside me. Now, do the right thing. Give me what I want so that I can negotiate your release."

Byakuya fought off the feeling of vertigo and exhaustion and answered in a low, rough whisper.

"No!"

"You say that like resisting is an option for you," Haschwalth scolded him calmly, "As the moments go on, it becomes less and less of an option. But, time also passes for Renji and Tetsuya, doesn't it?"

"I-infusions!" Byakuya panted, "Tetsuya needs infusions of his husband's r-reiatsu. If he doesn't get them, his reiatsu will destabilize and he'll..."

"I already knew about the importance of keeping his reiatsu stable," Haschwalth informed him, "We too, have some males who can have children, Byakuya."

Byakuya's head spun forcefully at the words, dropping him back into a very old and fireshot memory.

_He walked slowly alongside Soujun, gripping his father's hand tightly and looking ahead of them in the darkness._

_"Not much farther, segare," his father said soothingly, "Look ahead there. Do you see?"_

_Something bright and white was approaching them._

_"What is he?" Byakuya asked, his hand clenching his father's more tightly and his grey eyes widening, "Is that...an angel?"_

_The radiant being came closer, his grey eyes meeting Byakuya's and his lips smiling._

_Segare, this is..._

Byakuya broke out of the memory, gasping and struggling madly against the restraint field. He thought it strange that Haschwalth didn't move right away, but remained still and silent for a long time.

"What was that, Byakuya?" the quincy regent asked finally, "Was that a dream or was it a memory?"

Byakuya glared into the blindfold and gave no answer. There was a long silence, then something snapped around his wrist and Byakuya felt the restraining field relinquish its hold on him. He started to surge to his feet, then felt a sensation like overwhelming exhaustion come over his strained body as Haschwalth steadied him and removed the blindfold.

"Move slowly," Haschwalth advised him, "That device ensures you will not have the strength to move quickly or walk very far. Come with me."

Byakuya had no intention of being a compliant captive, but to his chagrin, his body weakened at even the thought of resistance, until he was so weak that he had to hold onto Haschwalth just to stand. The quincy regent led him to the bathroom and allowed him to relieve himself, then started to remove his yukata. Byakuya pulled away and collapsed onto the floor as Haschwalth knelt beside him and shook his head in disapproval.

"I only mean to help you bathe. I would let you do it yourself, but you are too dangerous. I think you know this. Relax and let me help you."

Left with little other choice, Byakuya allowed the quincy to lift him and guide him in under the hot spray of water. He could have cried out in relief if he hadn't quickly clenched his teeth. The water splashed down on his bare skin, soothing and slowly reviving him. Knowing better than to put up any fight, he simply stood dazedly with his eyes closed as Haschwalth tied a wrap around his waist and entered the shower. With hands that, strangely, felt as gentle as his own attendant's back home, the quincy lathered soap onto his pale skin and slowly bathed him, then let him turn to wash the lather away before working shampoo into his hair and massaging his scalp. He could almost forget he was a captive, just this side of breaking down and giving in to the enemy. It was that thought that made him stiffen and open his eyes. They met Haschwalth's tiredly.

"It was a quincy?" the regent inquired, tilting Byakuya's head back to rinse the shampoo away, "Was your father a secret supporter of the quincies, Byakuya? It's not relevant to what I was looking for. I'm just curious."

Byakuya blinked slowly and shook his head firmly, making the dizziness return forcefully. He pitched forward slightly and Haschwalth captured him in strong arms.

"N-no," he stammered, "We didn't ever see any quincies. I think that must have been a dream."

Haschwalth's eyes narrowed skeptically and he started to ask more, but was forced to stop the questions as he realized Byakuya was rested against his shoulder and sleeping on his feet.

"It's fine," he said quietly, caressing the naked shinigami's temples and breathing in his warm, sakura scent, "I'm sure that you've told that lie so often in your lifetime that you must, by now, believe it."

XXXXXXXXXX

"So, how do we get into the shadows?" Ichigo asked impatiently, earning a disapproving scowl from Uryu, "We made a plan for when we get there. Why are you stalling?"

"I'm not stalling," Uryu said, looking around the breakfast table in Kisuke kitchen, "It's just that we really need to be on our toes when we go in. We can't just go off half-cocked, like you usually want to do. We need to be careful. Haschwalth might expect this. In fact, he probably will. We need to be prepared to defend ourselves if he does."

Kurushimi downed his glass of orange juice and shrugged.

"You are looking at the one who defeated Ywach," he commented.

"Who barely defeated Ywach!" Uryu snapped, "And he didn't do it alone."

"I remember," Ichigo said, giving his lover a charismatic grin and making Uryu rub his temples in frustration, "So, are you going to tell us how we'll get into the shadows?"

"You guys can't open the gate," Uryu said sternly, "You have to be in the presence of a quincy, who will open it for you. And...mind control won't work, and force will only make the locking mechanism jam."

"So, the gate is mechanical?" Kuri asked.

"The gate is spiritual," Uryu corrected him, "That's one thing the surviving quincies have in their favor, I guess, is that only someone who wants to let others in can do so. There is a spirit guardian built into the gate that recognizes us and allows us and our guests to pass. Luckily for us, it isn't controlled by the quincy monarchy. It's a sentient guardian, so it will not just betray us to the regent. We'll be able to slip in, as long as we are quiet."

"Once we're in, how do we get to the palace?" Ichigo asked, taking a bite of his food.

"And how do we find where they're keeping our loved ones?" Kuri added.

"We can't take the gate that goes directly into Silbern," Uryu reasoned, "That one's going to be guarded too closely, but there are other places we can come out. I know of one that's not far away, but is secluded. We can use that one."

"Then, we should go," said Kuri, starting to stand.

"Wait a second," Kisuke chuckled, laying a hand on Kuri's shoulder and nudging him back into his seat, "I'm not done with your provisions. I'm getting there, but I want to be sure that we're not just going to send you in and get you slaughtered. You're planning an invasion and traveling with a guy who just turned down being king! You've gotta be careful."

"We will be," Ichigo chuckled, "Me and Kuri are just really worried about our friends."

"And my husband," Kuri added, "Tetsu-hana and I have both lost our husbands and children in the past. It was a miracle we found each other and made our babies together. I don't want our happiness to end the way the others did."

"We won't let that happen," Uryu promised, his face losing some of its sternness, "Look, I know you and I butt heads a lot, but Tetsuya's my friend too. I don't want anything bad to happen to any of them. I'm just being careful."

"I understand," Kuri said, frowning more deeply, "But it doesn't make it any easier to be patient."

"When have you ever been patient?" Ichigo teased.

"Good point."

XXXXXXXXXX

Tetsuya felt some of the haziness in his head fade away, and he found himself lying in a room in what appeared to be an infirmary. He sucked in a worried breath and reached for his abdomen. Relief flooded his pale face as he encountered the rounded area on his belly, and felt the warm reiatsu beneath it.

_Thank kami_.

He turned his head one way, then the other to study the room. The kido left him weak and drowsy, but he realized quickly that his captors had underestimated him, leaving him alone as he was. He started to climb out of the bed, but was stricken with dizziness and intense nausea that left him reeling. He clung to the bed and leaned over, emptying his stomach into a trash bin, then stood panting as approaching footsteps made him groan in protest.

"What are you doing awake?" an old quincy healer chided him, "and out of bed? Do you want to lose those babies? Your reiatsu is out of balance. I am not the father, but I can stabilize you. It will just take a while. But you must lie down and save your energy. You don't want to end up in an early labor, do you?"

"N-no," Tetsuya managed shakily, "I just want to go home. I w-want to see K-kuri."

"You will see him soon, my boy. Don't worry. Haschwalth-sama doesn't want to keep you here longer than necessary. But you aren't making his job any easier by getting out of bed and riling yourself. Lie down now. Rest a bit."

"B-byakuya?" Tetsuya panted weakly.

"He is not being harmed," the healer promised, "Haschwalth-sama made it very clear that he is not to be damaged in any way. You don't need to stress yourself out, worrying. Rest now, and I will take care of you."

Tetsuya laid back on the bed, his head spinning as the healer employed another sleep kido.

_Kuri?_

_Where are you?_

_I think the babies may come early..._


	4. Die Alte Blut

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Haschwalth makes a shocking discovery about Byakuya.

Byakuya opened his eyes and was surprised to find that the blindfold that had been over his eyes for much of the time he had been held in the quincy, Haschwalth's room, had been removed and the restrictive field over him abated. The strength sapping device remained fastened securely to his wrist, meaning he couldn't go far, but that he could move from the bed, at least. He turned his head and found that the balcony doors had been left open, allowing light to stream into the room, although he sensed a restrictive enclosure had been set in place to ensure that he wouldn't leave the area of the bedroom and balcony.

He sat up slowly, reeling for a moment at the rushing sound that filled his ears. He held still until the dizziness passed, then very slowly stood. A fresh yukata of handsome navy and pink waited for him on a hanger nearby, as well as soft navy slippers to keep his feet warm if he should venture outside.

 _I wonder what he is up to_ , Byakuya mused as he dressed, then sat down on the end of the bed to wait until the feeling of weakness left him again, _Haschwalth seemed very interested in that old dream I used to have sometimes. He seemed convinced it was a memory_.

Byakuya closed his eyes for a moment, trying to visualize the quincy in the dream, but all that he remembered were the man's bright white clothing, grey eyes and the different shape of his bow.

 _It's a crossbow, similar to the one the quincy, Bazz-B used. I don't remember anything else. The dream always stops when I see him and my father starts to tell me his name. I never remember the man's name_.

Very cautiously, Byakuya climbed to his feet, pausing to let the rushing go out of his ears again, then moving in increments towards the open balcony doors.

 _This is somewhat humiliating_...

But his lungs longed for the fresh air, so he tolerated the inconvenience of forced weakness and felt the reward for his efforts as a breath of refreshing, cool breeze brushed against his face, and sank down into his lungs, reviving him. He managed the last steps onto the balcony and dropped into a chair to rest. His efforts yielded a lovely view of the palace gardens, a large blue pond and a pretty view of the surrounding forest. Footsteps sounded in the room behind him, then an attendant appeared, bearing a tray of food.

"Haschwalth-sama asked me to bring you something to eat. If it is not to your liking, I can bring something else, sir."

"Thank you. That will be fine," Byakuya said, not even looking at the attendant or the tray he set down on the table beside the chair the noble rested in.

_This device leaves me feeling too sluggish to want food._

He focused his attention again on the gardens, replaying the dream about the quincy in his mind, then the other about the rape and secret birth he had almost succeeded in forgetting.

 _I haven't thought about what Aizen did to me in many years. Indeed, I had almost remade my past, cutting that part out and recreating it with the story I told everyone. Even Tetsuya doesn't know the truth about himself. I never told him_.

_It would break his heart to know._

_But as long as Haschwalth Jugram continues to employ the blindfold, there is the chance he might learn what Aizen did to me, and the lies that surround Tetsuya's history. No one needs to know...not the quincies, not Tetsuya...and I would never allow Aizen Sousuke to know. I have to forget and not dream of that time again. I shall focus on other things before sleeping, so that even when he uses the blindfold, I won't be thinking of anything of consequence. That should work, as our dreams are often connected to what is in our minds just before we sleep. The only thing I don't know is whether perhaps Haschwalth can suggest something into my mind while he is connected with me. I wonder too if the blindfold might have a weakness. Maybe...if he opens himself to suggest something into my thoughts, I can affect his thoughts too. I am sure he will continue to use the blindfold. The next time he does, I will test my theory._

"You haven't touched your food," Haschwalth said, surprising Byakuya with how quietly he had approached, "Despite your lowered activity level, you do still need to eat to maintain your strength."

"This device makes me dizzy, and the dizziness makes me too nauseous to eat," Byakuya explained, "I will not suffer, except perhaps in feeling hungry if I don't eat."

"I will adjust your menu to include more soothing foods," Haschwalth reasoned, "If you have any preferences, I would be happy to inform my staff."

"I hope that I don't need to inform anyone of my likings as I would rather be returned home soon."

Haschwalth nodded.

"I understand your feelings, but you should be informed. Central 46 has refused to negotiate with 'criminals and enemies' and so will not barter for your release. I have been in touch with Kuchiki Nori of your clan, and your elders have urged the council to reconsider. But thus far, they don't want to hear of it. It leaves us in a tenuous situation, since your cousin, Tetsuya, is going to deliver his children soon."

"Would you consider releasing Renji and Tetsuya if I agree to answer your questions regarding the intentions of Central 46 and the Gotei 13?"

Haschwalth gave him a surprised look.

"You would part with what you have fought so valiantly to protect after only hearing of their refusal to treat for your return?" he mused, "That begs the question of why."

"Why?" Byakuya repeated, "Because with the council refusing to negotiate, it lengthens the time we will be here, and that means Tetsuya will be forced to deliver his children in an enemy base, without his spouse present. And Renji is not useful as a hostage against Central 46, which concerns itself more with noble sons than peasants, however talented they may be."

"Ah, but Renji is useful as a member of the Gotei 13," Haschwalth countered, "as well as providing some necessary incentive for you to be at least minimally cooperative. Tetsuya also acts as an incentive of that sort."

"But you would be more convincing in your argument that you don't plan to hurt them if you would release Tetsuya, as his medical condition could deteriorate and he could suffer if not returned to his husband's clan."

"But Tetsuya is also a means of securing the cooperation of the Shima clan."

Byakuya shook his head firmly.

"Kurushimi loves Tetsuya dearly, but he knows that an abductor who would not return him because of his current medical status does not care about his well-being and is not suitable to care for him. Nor can such people be trusted to act in his best interests."

"He is a rather spirited man, isn't he?" Haschwalth observed, "Then, I think he is not the kind who will sit still and wait for negotiations to resume. He will come for Tetsuya. And when he does, I can deal with him more personally."

"With my cousin's life hanging in the balance?" Byakuya objected, "Tetsuya is a breeder male and with child! He is carrying twins, which increases the danger. Every moment he is kept here and not allowed to return home is one in which his situation could become critical. I have offered to give you something you want. I understand you won't bargain to release Renji, but please, you must allow Tetsuya to leave!"

Haschwalth went quiet and strolled to the edge of the balcony, looking off into the forest as he considered.

"I would consider releasing Tetsuya to Shima Kurushimi," he said finally, "but if I am to do that, I first need to know what I am releasing."

Byakuya frowned.

"What do you mean?" he asked cautiously.

Haschwalth turned back and looked into Byakuya's eyes as he answered.

"I want to place the blindfold on us again, and I want you to open your mind so that I can see into your knowledge of Tetsuya's past. That way, I will know if there is anything useful he could provide."

"Why don't you just ask me what you want to know?" Byakuya argued.

Haschwalth approached him in slow steps.

"Because it seems that there are secrets that you keep even from yourself," he answered cryptically, "I want to know more of how you learned of him and how you rescued and trained him. This will assure me that I am not making a foolish move by releasing him."

"Tetsuya is not a taichou," Byakuya insisted, "He is not a high ranking member of the clan!"

"But he has a bankai and he was entrusted with the protection of the Kuchiki clan leader. Clearly, there is more to this young man than meets the eye."

"Tetsuya is exceptionally powerful, yes," Byakuya admitted, "but he is also of mixed blood. His mother was a peasant."

Haschwalth paused and turned away again.

"Ah, yes. Perhaps that explains what was found in his latest round of medical tests."

"You are conducting tests on him?" Byakuya demanded.

"Only for his personal care," Haschwalth explained, "but those very simple tests revealed something that is interesting...especially in light of the purported dream the blindfold helped me witness."

"I don't understand," Byakuya said, coming to his feet and backing up a step as Haschwalth turned and advanced on him, "What are you talking about?"

Byakuya's breath escaped him suddenly as Haschwalth's hand took hold of the front of his yukata, and he forced Byakuya back against the balcony rail and heavy barrier. The Kuchiki leader's teeth clenched as the heavy reiatsu burned against his strained body, weakening him until Haschwalth was the only thing holding him on his feet. Haschwalth's eyes glittered dangerously as they glared down into his and his next words chilled Byakuya to the very core.

"Tetsuya has some quincy blood!" Haschwalth said accusingly, "He isn't just a mixed blood noble shinigami. He has a relative that was at least half quincy! Which, as I said, in light of that dream you had makes me wonder...You told me that your father and Tetsuya's father were close, and that Tetsuya's mother was a peasant of the Rukongai. As I know now that your family had at least some contact with the quincies, could his mother have been a quincy also?"

Byakuya managed a shaky breath.

"I...it's possible, yes. I told you. I don't remember the man in that dream. I don't remember having any sustained contact with any quincies! If we did, I wasn't in the loop. I was only brought along that once."

"Yes," Haschwalth agreed, "and the circumstances of that are telling. Your father thought it important that you meet that man. He introduced you personally. And the man was welcoming of meeting you. He looked very pleased to see you...and...you have his eyes, Byakuya."

Byakuya froze.

"That tells me that your family may have had more than a few dealings with our people. It also tells me that I need to look more closely at what you know."

Byakuya shivered and his jaw clenched more tightly as Haschwalth removed the blindfolds from within his clothing.

"I apologize for taking what is likely to be a very unpleasant action, but it is necessary for me to know exactly what you witnessed, who your father introduced you to, what you knew about the quincies, and how Tetsuya is connected to all of this. I warn you that if you resist, it will extremely painful while I am extracting the information, but as you refuse to yield the information and I need to have it, we are at an impasse."

"Don't do this!" Byakuya gasped as Haschwalth's firm hands set the blindfold over his eyes, "S-stop!"

He gritted his teeth, working to fill his mind with anything inconsequential he could think of. He felt the press of Haschwalth's anger against his mind as he was dragged to the bed and set under the field restraints again. Haschwalth laid down beside him, placing the other blindfold over his own eyes and focusing heavily. He encountered a barrage of extraneous thoughts, memories of recent benign events, boring repetitions of useless data and bits about the rebuilding of the Kuchiki home in the wake of the recent war.

 _You are very strong_ , he spoke into Byakuya's resisting mind, _but you don't know as well as I do how to use the blindfold. Relax, Byakuya. If you continue to resist, it will hurt you when I force my way into your thoughts._

The haze of interferences only increased with his warning.

 _You are forcing me to cause you pain_ , he intoned softly into Byakuya's reeling mind, _What is hidden within you that is so awful that you would let yourself be subjected to such torment to avoid revealing it_?

 _Byakuya_...

 _Stop resisting me_!

He had to admit that for someone uneducated about the use of the blindfold, the noble put up an exceptional fight, fending off his advances with carefully prepared bursts of nonsensical or useless distractions, even some things that looked useful, but only led to a tumble of unrelated images. But in the end, the shinigami was held back by the weakness imposed on his body and the stress of his captivity. Haschwalth employed a thrust of powerful reiatsu that shattered the interference and left Byakuya's mind open and vulnerable. Even then, Haschwalth entered carefully, causing as little pain as he could and attempting to mitigate the heavy swell of the shinigami's raging emotions at the invasion.

 _This will be kept between the two of us_ , he promised, _and I will only take what I need_.

But as much as he was acting in a merciful fashion, Haschwalth wasn't prepared for the palpable ache in his heart when Byakuya's defenses gave way and his mindless mental scream sounded in both their heads as he was forced to surrender.

Tendrils of the man's thoughts appeared in strands all around Haschwalth's invading mind. He sensed Tetsuya's presence in Byakuya's thoughts and followed it into the younger Kuchiki's past that had been shared with Byakuya. Moving backward in time from the present, he traced Tetsuya's presence back through the quincy war and Aizen's invasion, into Byakuya's teen years, then into Itamigiri and before. He froze at an image of Byakuya, holding a tiny infant and handing him to a man who looked like a relative. He focused on the scene and watched it come to life before him.

 _Byakuya panted more softly, recovering slightly as the rigors of delivery ended. He gazed up at Kuchiki Takao with grateful eyes as the healer handed him the tiny, blue-eyed baby_.

_"Are you sure you must do this?" Takao asked, watching as Byakuya blinked back tears and hugged his newborn son tightly._

_"It is the only thing I can do!" he exclaimed softly._

_"If you just told Ginrei, I am sure that..."_

_"You don't understand," Byakuya managed, tears leaking onto his face, "This baby was made in an unholy fashion. I was raped."_

_Takao's eyes rounded._

_"What did you say? Who...?"_

_"I am sorry," Byakuya sobbed, kissing the baby on the cheek and handing him to Takao, "I can't tell you more than that. But that is enough so you know why I can never claim him as my own. You must take Tetsuya and get him out of here! I know that you have wanted to escape into the Rukongai so that you and Kiko can be married. Please, raise Tetsuya as your son and give him everything I can't! I can't be his father. But...someday, I will be his cousin. Someday when we are older. Maybe we can be like you and my father were."_

_"Don't worry," Takao said, holding the infant against him and touching Byakuya's damp face gently, "Kiko and I will make sure that Tetsuya has as untroubled and happy a youth as we can give him."_

_"Just...never tell a soul," Byakuya insisted, "No one can know."_

Haschwalth stared at the stopped image of Byakuya's shattered expression as Takao left, holding Tetsuya in his arms.

_We get closer to the truth, but...who was Tetsuya's father?_

He didn't relish what he had to do next, but he searched the strands of Byakuya's memory for the mentioned assault and found it a short time later. He felt a flicker of his own dark memory as he watched Aizen Sousuke begin his conquest, then stopped the memory before it could fully trigger the connection in his own past.

_I was also physically and sexually abused by my uncle. I don't like triggering the areas of his past that have to do with this. It also makes me vulnerable._

Instead, he traced back further, until he found again the memory of Byakuya as a small child, holding his father's hand and walking towards what he knew now was a quincy.

_Byakuya looked up at the smiling man's grey eyes that looked back at him lovingly._

_"Segare," Soujun said softly, smiling at the man, "this is Bach Tarelle. Byakuya, this is your true father!"_

Haschwalth tore the blindfold from his face, then removed Byakuya's and exited the bed, standing for a long time, looking down at him as though seeing him for the first time. In his mind, he saw again the files on Byakuya's powers that had made him curious before.

_"Bankai," Byakuya's voice intoned softly, "Senbonzakura Kageyoshi, Shuukei Hakuteikan!"_

_Lovely white angelic wings billowed out on each side of him and reiatsu made a white halo over his head, where he held the white emperor sword._

"It's true," Haschwalth whispered, barely believing, "Your Shuukei Hakuteiken isn't just a part of your bankai...it is a vollstandig!"

His gaze intensified as he turned away and looked out at the dying light outside the room.

"A quincy who has stolen a bankai can't release a vollstandig while possessing the bankai. But one of mixed shinigami and quincy blood who is strong enough can wield both..."

He turned back and stared in shock at Byakuya, who remained unmoving on the bed.

"It's true then. You are... _Die Alte Blut_. Your father, Byakuya, was quincy royalty!"


	5. Bastards Have Brothers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Byakuya tells Tetsuya the truth about his birth.

The old quincy healer smiled down at Tetsuya as he examined him carefully, then nodded approvingly and helped him sit up.

"You are doing much better since you rested," he reported, "Your reiatsu has calmed. It would be good for you to walk a bit, and Haschwalth-sama has requested that I bring you to see your cousin."

Tetsuya's eyes widened.

"He'll let me see Byakuya-sama?" he asked, "But before, he wouldn't even think of it. Why now? Has something happened to Byakuya-sama? Was he hurt?"

"Take it easy, my boy," the healer chuckled, "You'll rile your reiatsu again and pass out. Your cousin hasn't been hurt physically, but Haschwalth-sama said that the interrogation has been difficult for him. He is exhausted and will be more emotional than before, but he hasn't been injured."

Tetsuya scowled.

"That's only to say that Haschwalth-sama has been mentally cruel, rather than physically. I am not stupid. I've been roughly interrogated and worse! Your master is a monster!"

"Well," the healer sighed, "that is true, I suppose. But when you have the weight of responsibility for our people's survival on your shoulders, sometimes you have to be a monster, ne? I'll bet even your cousin has told you that before, hasn't he?"

Tetsuya still frowned, but he sighed and nodded grudgingly.

The healer put a hand on his shoulder.

"Be a good lad now. Your cousin needs someone familiar with him. He's been very quiet since he was last interrogated and Haschwalth-sama would like him soothed."

"How very kind of him," Tetsuya said skeptically, reaching down to rub his round belly, "Very well, then. I will go to him."

"Come along," the healer said, helping Tetsuya to his feet.

He led the young man through several hallways and into a heavily guarded corridor.

"Haschwalth-sama has been very careful not to let your cousin be harmed by anyone," the healer said, observing the guards.

"Except him," Tetsuya said under his breath.

The healer nodded to the guards at Haschwalth's chamber door, and they parted, allowing the two to pass.

"You go on in," the healer said, "I'll be out here if you need anything. Just see if you can get him talking. Like I said, he's been quiet since his interrogation."

Tetsuya stepped in through the door and closed it behind him. He paused, studying the rich, dark wood furniture and tasteful decor, then turned to look where Haschwalth sat beside the bed where Byakuya reclined, propped up by pillows, looking distantly in front of him and not seeming to notice his cousin's arrival.

"Kuchiki Tetsuya," Haschwalth greeted him, "please come here."

"What have you done to Byakuya-sama?" Tetsuya demanded, holding a hand to his belly as it throbbed in protest, "What's wrong with him? I thought you said you didn't hurt him!"

"I haven't harmed him physically," Haschwalth assured him as Tetsuya joined him at Byakuya's side, "It was necessary for me to interrogate him for information relating to the Central 46 council's intentions. You are aware that our survival depends on us knowing what he knows. You know the situation that council put us in. I had no choice. And even though I did force the information from him, I wasn't unnecessarily cruel in doing so. I am regretful for hurting him emotionally, but our future rests partially on what this man knows. I did what I had to do. I will make no apology for that."

"But why are you allowing me to see him now?" Tetsuya snapped angrily, "Is this just to help him recover enough for the next round of questions?"

"Byakuya is in no state to answer any questions," Haschwalth said quietly, "There were things that my investigation uncovered that I was not expecting. It is these things that have left him unresponsive. I think having you here may help him cope."

"I don't know how," Tetsuya said, shaking his head, "He's so out of it, he doesn't seem to know I'm here! How am I supposed to reach him?"

"I am not sure," Haschwalth admitted, "but I will let you alone to try. I will be watching from another room, so that I can assist if you need anything."

"We need to go home!" Tetsuya said angrily, "Not one of us who you kidnapped and brought here had anything to do with the council's decision. You know that, and yet, you treat my cousin like this?"

Tetsuya flinched as Haschwalth laid a hand gently on his and looked into his eyes.

"We are all doing what we have to do, Tetsuya."

He rose and walked to the door, then turned back for a moment.

"You are living under a large number of misconceptions, Tetsuya. And the pain this causes is in some cases, unavoidable. Please do what you can to comfort Byakuya. I will return later."

Tetsuya watched with furious eyes as Haschwalth exited the room, then he turned his attention to his spellbound cousin.

"Byakuya-sama?" he inquired, laying a hand on his cousin's, "Byakuya-sama, are you all right? Can you hear me?"

Tetsuya's heart sank as Byakuya looked straight ahead through a tumble of strands of black hair. His grey eyes looked haunted.

"Byakuya-sama, is there anything I can do?" he asked worriedly, "Please say something."

Tetsuya looked around the room, shivering at the lack of any semblance to their home.

"Without you, I'm alone here," Tetsuya went on, rubbing his belly, then moving Byakuya's hand to rest over the developing babies, "The babies and I need you. Can't you please say something?"

He let out a shaky breath and climbed onto the bed, then curled up against Byakuya's side in a way they had done often while sleeping under the stars in the wilderness near Kuchiki Manor. Byakuya said nothing, but after a few long minutes, he wrapped a pale arm around Tetsuya and brought the younger man's head to rest on his shoulder.

"I want to go home," Tetsuya whispered, a tear running down one porcelain cheek, "Why are they doing this? Why won't they let us go home?"

Tetsuya froze as Byakuya's reply when he finally spoke, seemed to echo ominously through the room.

"I think they can't."

He lifted his head and met his cousin's tormented eyes, searching them for some kind of answer.

"I don't understand," Tetsuya whispered, "What are you saying? What are you trying to tell me? Byakuya-sama...!"

He shivered as Byakuya's hand curved gently around his face.

"I am sorry, Tetsuya," Byakuya apologized numbly, "I only meant to protect you. I couldn't speak the truth before, because you wouldn't have survived to take another breath!"

"What is this about?" Tetsuya asked worriedly, "What has that man done to you? You're confused..."

"No," Byakuya assured him, devastation overtaking his handsome features, "It is just that when my eyes were uncovered, and I realized that I couldn't keep up the lies anymore, it caused me unspeakable pain."

"What did he do to you?" Tetsuya pleaded, blinking back his own tears, "You're so pale. You look almost desperate. Please, you must try to rest!"

"I cannot rest," Byakuya objected, clenching at Tetsuya's arm, "I can't let the lies go on anymore. If I don't want something horrible to happen, my only hope is to tell you, so that you'll understand why we cannot go back to the Seireitei right now!"

"What do you mean? Why can't we go back home? What are the lies you are talking about? Please tell me!"

Byakuya nodded and leaned against him for a moment, gathering himself.

"All right," Byakuya sighed, closing his burning eyes, then opening them and focusing on Tetsuya's, "But you need to understand, I only know part of the truth, the part that explains about you...about your past."

"What about my past?" Tetsuya asked in a mystified tone, "I am the son of a noble and a peasant...Kuchiki Takao and Kuchiki Kiko, ne? I was made a captive when they were abducted and taken to Itamigiri, where I suffered the hatred and abuse of my captors until you rescued me. That is the truth I know. Are you saying it's a lie?"

Byakuya's head bowed penitently.

"Some of it is true," Byakuya explained, "but much of it is false. Tetsuya, the truth is...you..."

Byakuya paused, shivering as he tried to force out the words. Seeing his distress, Tetsuya squeezed his hand comfortingly.

"You aren't the son of Kuchikis Takao and Kiko," he managed, his voice shaking slightly.

Tetsuya stared back at him wordlessly.

"You were born out of a Kuchiki man, a breeder male who was raped by a commoner."

Tetsuya's eyes rounded, but he remained silent as Byakuya went on.

"The young man was barely more than a child, barely of age. He was misled and raped by someone he trusted. But...you mustn't think that he ever held that against you."

"Byakuya-sama..." Tetsuya whispered, "that is horrible!"

"The one who bore you did love you, Tetsuya...in fact, so much so, that he decided the best thing for you was to have loving parents who didn't have that weight hanging over them. You would raised in a loving family and your true birth parent would be close to you, even if you never knew. He didn't anticipate that your family would be targeted by the ones who ran the prison. And when you were, the only thing he could think about, was that he had put you in the hands of those horrible people himself. By giving you up, he gave you, not a happy home, but a life of pain, of hatred and servitude, of abuse. Tetsuya...there is nothing he wouldn't have to find you...to rescue you and to make sure that nothing like that ever happened to you again."

Tetsuya gave his cousin a haunted look.

"What happened to him?" he asked warily, "Byakuya-sama, did he die? Why didn't he come for me?"

Byakuya stared back at Tetsuya, unable to speak anymore. Tetsuya sucked in a sharp breath and stiffened with realization.

"Byakuya-s-sama...y-you?" he whispered shakily, "But...?"

"I am sorry...so very sorry!" Byakuya apologized, taking Tetsuya's teary face in his hands and gazing deeply into his devastated eyes, "I thought that I was sparing you by giving you to Takao and Kiko. I never dreamed they would be captured like that!"

"That's why you were desperate to save me," Tetsuya concluded, studying Byakuya more closely, "That's why you kept me close to you, once I was freed."

"Make no mistake, I would have gone to rescue Takao and Kiko as Takao was close to my father. He was a good man who didn't deserve to die like he did. Kiko was gentle and loving, everything that a good mother should be. She would have made you so happy. I knew that, and it was why I could find the strength to let you go."

Tetsuya sat silently for a moment, letting the facts settle in his mind. He turned them over in his mind, then took a breath and asked the question that burned hottest in his mind.

"Byakuya-sama..."

He trailed off, looking at Byakuya curiously.

"You may just continue to call me that," Byakuya assured him, "I gave you up. Takao and Kiko were your rightful parents."

"But...Byakuya-sama, I must ask you, who...?"

"Who is your father?"

"No," Tetsuya said firmly, shaking his head, "The man who hurt you is not my father. Kuchiki Takao is the only father I will recognize...except for you."

Byakuya took a steadying breath.

"My rapist was someone I trusted wholeheartedly. He had always been kind to me. He mentored me in calligraphy."

Tetsuya sucked in a surprised breath and covered his mouth with a shaking hand.

"You must never, ever tell a soul about him," Byakuya insisted, "He doesn't know I gave birth to you. He doesn't know he has a son. And if he did learn that you were his, there is no telling what he would do. Tetsuya, he escaped custody and is a fugitive right now. It is critical that you not speak of this to anyone!"

"Wh-what about Kuri?" Tetsuya inquired tentatively, "I know you don't always get along with him, but he is my husband."

"It is fine if you tell him, but you must first swear him to secrecy," Byakuya said urgently, "Tetsuya, if Aizen even gets a hint that you are his son..."

"He won't," Tetsuya promised, "Kuri and I will never let on."

Byakuya nodded briefly, then took another weighted breath and forced himself to continue.

"There is more, Tetsuya," he confessed wearily, "And it gets worse, if that is possible."

"Maybe we should stop for a while," Tetsuya suggested, "You look so tired, _watashi no ito_ -...Byakuya-sama. We can continue after you have eaten and rested."

"No," Byakuya insisted, "You need answers, Tetsuya. You need to understand, not only that I lied to you about your birth, but that I, myself, did not know the truth of my own birth. And what happened before I was born is now impacting our lives."

"What are you saying?" Tetsuya asked, looking confused, "Are you saying you are not the son of Kuchikis Soujun and Sorano?"

"I am Kuchiki Soujun's son," Byakuya explained, "but...I was not born out of Sorano. And Soujun wasn't my father, but my bearer. I don't yet know the story. I have only remembered that my father was in love with a quincy. I only met him once, just once. And for some reason, everything I knew about him, even his existence, was somehow taken from my mind, so that I had no idea it had ever happened. But I know now that my father was a quincy and that Kuchiki Soujun was my bearer. Tetsuya, this will be...very difficult, but, the quincy who impregnated Soujun was Bach Tarelle. According to Haschwalth Jugram, he was...Ywach's brother!"

"Oh kami!" Tetsuya breathed unsteadily, rubbing his belly and trying to slow his quickened breathing.

Byakuya gave him a tormented look.

"I am sorry! I never wanted you to be burdened with this. But...you understand now why it isn't safe for either of us to return to the Seireitei. The way things are, if word should get out about our ties to Aizen Sousuke and the quincies, there is no telling what Central 46 or even other people might do, because of their desire for revenge on those men!"

"But what are we supposed to do?" Tetsuya asked worriedly, "We didn't do anything wrong! We have only ever fought for Soul Society's protection! And what about my babies! We need to be home with Kuri and the rest of our family! We can't be imprisoned here!"

"Tetsuya, you know the kind of atrocities that this kind of thing can lead to. This is precisely the kind of thing that led to your imprisonment in Itamigiri!"

"And so, the answer is to make me have my babies away from their father and everyone who loves us?" Tetsuya asked, his voice breaking and tears leaking onto his face, "Byakuya-sama, I have tried to be brave. I have tried to cooperate, but I can't do this! I can't stay here, away from Kuri and have our children alone!"

"You won't be alone, Tetsuya," Byakuya insisted, "Haschwalth has made plans to see that Shima Kurushimi will be here for the birth of your children. And I will be here as well. You will not be alone. I am sorry that you have to be here, but at least here, you and your children will be safe. And as soon as we can open a dialogue with Central 46 to negotiate, you will be able to go home."

Tetsuya gave a sigh of relief.

"Thank goodness for that, at least," he mused, "But what about you? When will you be released?"

Byakuya stiffened slightly.

"My case is different," he explained, "I am the son of Ywach's brother, and there are responsibilities that go along with that. I will not be returning home for some time. Maybe not ever, Tetsuya."

Tetsuya's eyes widened.

"Why not! They have no right to keep you here! Part quincy or not, you're a clan leader. No one can...!"

"I am also the only one who can revive Ywach's bloodline."

"Who wants to revive his bloodline?" Tetsuya demanded, "He was a demon! And they can't force you to do that, can they?"

"I don't know," Byakuya said in a conflicted tone, "Haschwalth told me that he is going to be meeting with the council in the morning, and that they will be discussing how what he discovered about me will be treated."

"They have to let you go," Tetsuya said angrily, "I don't are if Ywach's brother is your father. You are a person, and they can't force you into something like..."

"You know that, as members of a noble family, we can be compelled to marry for the good of the clan," Byakuya reminded him, "This is much like that. I may not have chosen this, but I am the principal carrier of the royal bloodline. It is likely that I will be expected to mate with a quincy to revive the bloodline."

"That's ridiculous!" Tetsuya fumed, rubbing his belly harder.

"Calm yourself, Tetsuya," Byakuya sighed wearily, "You have to think about your children. I am fine, now that the initial shock has worn off. I will deal with this. I just...hope that you will forgive me for dragging you into all of this."

Tetsuya gave him a sad smile and hugged him tightly.

"None of this is your fault," he assured Byakuya, "You had no choice about who your father loved and you couldn't help that Aizen Sousuke deceived you into trusting him, then violated that trust. I don't blame you for trying to protect me. I know you were thinking of my safety and well-being."

"Well, though it is kind of you to be so forgiving, there is something that can't be undone. And our fate lies in the council taking place tomorrow, and the decision they will make. I don't pretend to know how they will decide, but I do know I will find a way to get you released to go home, Tetsuya. I won't have you and your babies forced to stay here."

"And I won't let those bastards keep you here!" Tetsuya resolved, crossing his arms, "One way or another, I'll make sure you get home too!"


	6. The Devil you Know

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Byakuya is forced into a noble marriage.

"Okay," Uryu said, looking over his shoulder at Kuri and Ichigo, "this is where we'll go through. We're going to come down into a little clearing in the forest. Don't worry, I know some ways to get to the palace and get in unseen. The greatest danger is running into someone when we first cross over. Only the palace gates are usually guarded, but if they were worried about an invasion, they could have sent officers to the other gates as well."

"Do you think they figure that Central 46 might be able to find a way to use Giselle to get in and beef up security because of that?" Ichigo asked.

"Maybe," Uryu reasoned, "but given that there's never been a way found to coerce a quincy to let anyone in, and there's no known way yet to mimic a quincy entrant, they'll keep up the palace defenses, but not waste personnel guarding the gates that are more remote."

"Unless they happen to have used your thinking and decided to be extra careful," Kuri added.

"That could happen," Uryu agreed, "so if there's anyone there, we have to knock them out fast and don't let them contact anyone at the palace or we're done before we set foot in there."

"Cheery, isn't he?" Kuri sighed.

"I'm just being honest about how things might go wrong. You both just need to be ready for anything."

"All right," Ichigo said, drawing his sword as Kuri did the same.

Uryu approached the gate and extended a hand, resting it on the invisible structure and willing it to open. Very slowly, the gate swung wide, opening the way in front of them, although all they could see ahead of them was a vague brightness.

"Is it supposed to be like this?" asked Ichigo.

"Yes," Uryu assured him, "We won't be able to see clearly until we are on the other side of the gate and come down in the forest."

"Am I the only one who doesn't like the sound of that?" Kuri mused.

"I think none of us like it," Ichigo agreed, "but we're all in this together, so come on."

The three moved forward cautiously, extending their senses, although the haze around them distorted what they received, making any effort to read the area ahead of them impossible.

"Man, I really don't like this," Ichigo complained softly.

Kuri made a muted sound of agreement.

The three pressed forward, surrounded by the cloudy haze, tensed and ready for any sign of another presence. Even so, they were jolted when they came down into the forest clearing to find three white clad shapes and one in black in front of them. Kuri and Ichigo brought their swords around and Uryu stiffened and raised his bow quickly.

"No, stop guys!" Renji's voice called out to them, "It's me!"

The three kept their weapons trained on the ones ahead of them, but stepped all of the way through the gate and moved into the clearing to find Abarai Renji standing, unbound, with Bazzard Black and two quincy palace guards.

"Guys, put your weapons down. They're not here to capture you. We're here to meet you."

Uryu gave him a skeptical look.

"How did anyone know we would be here?"

"Haschwalth had all of the other gates outside the palace destroyed in case of war," Bazz-B reported, "They'll destroy this one too when we leave, but Haschwalth wanted to leave it because it was where you would have to go if you weren't going to enter the palace itself. Look, some...pretty incredible things are going on. You need to come with us and Haschwalth will explain."

"Will I be able to see my husband?" Kuri demanded.

"Yes," Renji assured him, "Tetsuya's been with Byakuya for much of the last day or so. You'll see when we get there. Just put your weapons away and don't kill any of us, okay?"

Ichigo, Kuri and Uryu exchanged glances, then slowly lowered their weapons. They approached the waiting shinigami and quincies, still slightly tensed and ready to react to any sign of betrayal, but as they reached Renji, the redhead only smiled at them.

"You don't know how glad I am to see you guys!" he exclaimed, "There is some weird shit going on...although I don't know what exactly it all is. But Haschwalth's had Byakuya in his quarters the whole time and more recently they've let Tetsuya in to be with him. I think when he was interrogated, Haschwalth learned something pretty earthshaking. Nobody seems to know what exactly, but there was mention of something to do with royal blood."

"I guess we'll find out when we get there, right?" Uryu reasoned, "I just hope no one does any backstabbing."

"Although, honestly, it was Central 46 who started the backstabbing," Renji said, rolling his eyes, "Do you know those sons of bitches wouldn't even negotiate for our release? How screwed up is that?"

"Yeah, we heard," Ichigo informed him, "That's why we were working with Uryu to get in. Tetsuya's about to have his twins. He's got to be scared out of his wits, being held hostage like that."

"He was," Bazz-B admitted, "but then, Haschwalth had him taken to see Byakuya, and he's been much calmer since...probably partly because Haschwalth told Byakuya and him that he was going to let us in. He said he specifically wanted you two and Kuri there to hear what he discovered. So, we're going to the palace and meeting with the quincy noble lords."

"I thought you told me before that Ywach slaughtered all of the noble lords," Uryu said, frowning,

"He did," Bazz-B agreed, "But when we came back after the war, Haschwalth gathered what was left of the sons of those houses and reinstated the noble lords to help rebuild their old territories. He gave back the land that was taken from my father when Ywach murdered him."

"You, a noble lord?" Ichigo chuckled, "Well, never would've believed that."

"Very cute, asshole," Bazz-B snickered, "Anyway, we'll take you to the council meeting and you'll be there to hear whatever discovery they made. Just don't disturb the peace by killing anyone and things will be all right...at least, I think they will be."

"Man, this is so not how I envisioned our trip here," Ichigo mused.

"Yeah, weird," Renji agreed.

The group headed out of the clearing as the guards behind them smashed the gate they had come through, then followed. Bazz-B led the others along a forest trail that merged with a larger one and exited the forest near the heavily guarded entrance to the palace gardens. The group was waved through by the guards and proceeded up the garden trail, past rows of sakura and plum trees as well as tranquil koi ponds and a small shrine. They moved on to the palace's garden entrance, where they were greeted by a palace attendant, who led them to a small greeting room, just outside the council meeting chambers.

"Please leave your weapons here, sirs," the attendant instructed them, "No weapons are allowed in the meeting hall."

With looks of residual misgiving, Ichigo, Uryu and Kuri set their weapons down and followed the attendant through an inner set of doors that took them to the council meeting chamber.

The room, while not overly large, had an open feel to it and there was artistry to the shapely white pillars and carefully hewn statues that lined the sides. The table at the chamber's center was polished white, as were the chairs, and all were marked with a cross shape. The group was led to a set of seats just off to the side of the head of the table and instructed to sit and wait. Moments later, the chamber's larger doors opened.

The noble lords were the first to enter, dressed in white and their clothing marked with the styled crest of each noble quincy family. Bazz-B took his leave of them and stood by his seat at the table with the other noble lords as all turned to watch Haschwalth enter the room. The regent was dressed in full regalia, and was accompanied by two black-haired men dressed in the white, flowing livery of the quincy royal family. Uryu, Ichigo and Kuri exchanged glances with a stymied Renji as they realized who the two men were.

"What the hell is going on?" Ichigo hissed, "Why are Byakuya and Tetsuya dressed like that?"

"I don't know," Kuri growled, "but I'm going to..."

"No, wait," Uryu warned him, laying a hand on his arm, "We don't have any weapons and obviously, they haven't been hurt. They look fine and as though they've been cared for. Let's wait and see how they explain this."

"I don't like it," Kuri complained.

"Me either," Ichigo agreed, "but he's got a point that we're really not in a good position to fight all of these guys in here and get Byakuya and Tetsuya out unharmed. We should wait and see what they do."

"Fine, but I still don't like it..." Kuri insisted.

The group waited as Haschwalth moved to the head of the table, then motioned for everyone to sit. He took the chair at the head of the table and Byakuya sat at his left shoulder, while Tetsuya occupied his right. Byakuya looked silently ahead of him and didn't seem to notice them, but Tetsuya spotted Kuri and smiled longingly in his direction. Kuri stiffened, but managed to smile back encouragingly.

"Lords and ladies," Haschwalth said in greeting, "I know all of you are curious as to why this meeting has been called, and the rumors have been flying. The truth, it seems, is even more unbelievable than the myths going around, as in our discussions with Kuchiki Byakuya, leader of the Shinigami house Kuchiki, we have discovered something of immense importance."

Ichigo and the others exchanged mystified glances and looked back at Haschwalth.

"You all know that Ywach has fallen, and that he left leadership to Uryu, who has abdicated and left regency to me. And although Ywach had other family, they are all dead...or so we thought. But...while interrogating Kuchiki Byakuya, I uncovered a link between Ywach's brother, Tarelle, and Byakuya's father. And although it was not known that Tarelle ever chose a mate or had any children, it seems that he and Kuchiki Soujun became romantically involved...and they are the true parents of Kuchiki Byakuya.

A wave of shock seemed to go through the room and hissing voices erupted all around.

"No way!" Ichigo and Renji exclaimed, going wide-eyed.

Uryu stared in surprise and couldn't speak.

Kuri's eyes widened and he kept them carefully trained on Tetsuya as Haschwalth continued.

"I also learned that Kuchiki Tetsuya is actually the offspring of Byakuya and an unnamed shingami peasant. He is less than half quincy, so, as you know, would not be useful in reviving the royal line."

"Thank kami," Uryu whispered.

"What?" Ichigo inquired, frowning, "How is that good? And Tetsuya's Byakuya's kid? Really? What the hell?"

"Since Tetsuya is less than half quincy, he will be released to his family," Uryu explained.

"What about Taichou?" Renji demanded.

They went quiet again as Haschwalth continued.

"I know that this isn't what you were probably expecting, but as you see, there is an actual heir who can keep the power of the Bach royal family from dying out. As you know, the Bach family was a completely paternal line...meaning that there were no women. All children in the line came from males, whose resonance with certain other males allowed them to conceive and bear children. As Byakuya is royal, but of half blood, he is first, accorded our deepest respect. We must understand that he had no knowledge that he carried the last of the Bach bloodline in his veins. This information was kept from him by his parents to protect him from Ywach, who couldn't sense Byakuya's royal blood because it was also transcendent and beyond his almighty ability. As you can imagine, he is weighted down by the sudden discovery, as well as learning what the expectations will be for him to revive the bloodline. According to our laws, Byakuya must take a quincy husband who is approved by the council and he must accept that man into his body to produce at least two offspring. When that is done, he is to be free to choose whether to remain here, in the shadows, with us, where he will be treated as patriarch of the royal family, although his child will be crowned king...or he may return to Soul Society if he wishes."

"He's gotta do what?" Renji asked, blinking in surprise.

"Devils..." Kuri muttered, "They're forcing him to marry someone?"

Haschwalth turned to Byakuya.

"As the family patriarch, you will be allowed to choose your husband from among me and the noble males I indicated to you before as having high enough resonance with the blood that was taken from you. I am sorry that we must require you to do this, but I will remind you that, first, you are a quincy and subject to our laws, and second, once this obligation is met, you are free to dissolve your marriage and return to Soul Society."

"And Tetsuya?" Byakuya inquired softly.

"Tetsuya is free to join his husband in the royal quarters he has been given, after the meeting. But it is likely not safe for him to leave while there is so much unrest between our people. We will need the help of the Kuchiki and Shima families to make the way safe for Tetsuya's return. I suggest that you allow him to have his children here, then you, Shima Kurushimi, should go back and inform the shinigamis what has happened. When you feel it is safe, Tetsuya and your children can go home as well."

"If they survive your dubious hospitality," Kuri muttered under his breath.

"But there is still the matter of choosing the man who will join with Byakuya to revive the royal bloodline. Byakuya, I have explained to you prior to this meeting the ones available for you to choose. As the heir, you may choose any of them and they are required to respect your decision."

"You mean that they have as little choice about this as I do," Byakuya said quietly, his eyes remaining carefully lowered.

He paused and raised them slowly to meet the eyes of the gathered nobles.

"Will you please read the names, Haschwalth?" he asked.

The quincy regent nodded and gave a slow recitation of the names. As he stated each, each noble rose, until all of the choices, including Haschwalth, were standing.

"And will each of you answer honestly in the quincy way as to how you feel about being chosen?" Byakuya asked, remembering Haschwalth's prior instruction.

He watched silently as the standing nobles split evenly, with half of the men placing a hand over their hearts to signal acceptance and half averting their eyes. Byakuya's eye studied each man, then returned to Haschwalth, who stood with one hand over his heart as well.

"I don't know if I can make such a decision," Byakuya said in a conflicted tone.

"I understand," Haschwalth said calmly, "And if you don't feel comfortable, I can call for a council vote on the matter to choose what this group feels is the most appropriate match for you. What would you have me do?"

"I would have you start a new royal line and allow me to leave," Byakuya said stubbornly, "I did not ask for this dubious honor, and what you are doing, forcing an enemy noble leader to marry into your society is considered captivity and rape, if you lay hands on me."

He glared at the others in the room.

"If I am uncooperative, I will have to, by your laws, be restrained and sedated," he said coldly, "Which among you wishes to have such an atrocity on your conscience?"

There was a long pause, then the ones who had signaled agreement, one by one, averted their eyes...until only Haschwalth was left with his hand over his heart. He looked at Byakuya silently for several long moments before speaking.

"Byakuya, none of us here want to harm you. We are grateful that the powerful Bach bloodline can be saved, but the only way to revive it is through the birth of new heirs. We have no choice but to do this. And as the others here have respectfully declined, I will take the weight upon myself to be married to you and to provide the heirs with you."

"What choice do I have?" Byakuya said stiffly, "I will not change my mind about exactly what this is."

"Neither will I," Haschwalth said, more gently, "I agree with you that it feels wrong. But I also am bound by our laws, as well as the need to retain what powerful blood I can for the throne. We are still in a state of war and our people could very well die out if there is another quincy purge."

"And you think this won't encourage the shinigamis to attack you?" Byakuya asked.

"Remember, Byakuya, that you are half quincy," Haschwalth said solemnly, "It would be dangerous for you to be anywhere but here until the situation improves. And we will take from you only what is ours by law. Our healers will ensure that you are treated with a fertility enhancer that will make your body produce more than one child, so that you must only be with me once. After that, you will have your own quarters in the palace, and I will only have contact with you to provide necessary infusions, if that is your wish."

He paused again, measuring his words.

"Byakuya, try to imagine what it is like for us," he said finally, "Ywach tore the heart out of us and used us all, destroying his own family line, except for himself and you. When he died, we were left hopeless that the strength his line embodied would ever return to protect us. We are just trying to survive amidst the shinigamis very real threat to end all of our lives. You know the truth. You know that if not for Ywach's domination, the recent war would never have happened. Ywach stole our future too. Your Central 46 made things worse by violating the terms of our surrender in the war. You, yourself, agreed that this was unforgivable, as was their abandonment of you when we brought you here. There are no fully guilty or innocent parties here. We are all both. But, by this one act, you can help us to secure what we need to survive. I don't want to lay hands on you without it being your will also...but I am compelled to in the name of survival. You can resist, and it will weigh on me to act as your aggressor. But together, you and I can bring balance back to our societies and bring eventual peace. I humbly ask you to take that step with me."

Haschwalth removed his hand from over his heart and extended it in Byakuya's direction.

The room went still and perfectly silent as Byakuya looked back at Haschwalth, then very slowly...

...accepted his hand.


	7. Royal Wedding

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Byakuya submits to a forced marriage and begins the revival of the Bach bloodline.

Haschwalth bent over the table on which the marriage contract laid, studying the prepared document and signing his name on one of the indicated lines before handing the pen to Byakuya, who signed without reading.

"Thank you," Haschwalth said quietly, "You cooperation will make things much easier."

"It isn't as though there is any choice," Byakuya said solemnly, "I am just doing what I must, as painlessly as possible. Hopefully, my cooperation will convince you to expedite Tetsuya's release more quickly."

"You know that Tetsuya won't be able to leave for a while," Haschwalth reminded him, "The danger he would be in as soon as word escaped about him being a quincy...No, it is safer for his husband and him to remain here at the palace."

"Are you saying that you think the shinigamis have a way of spying on you here? Or are you saying that you think there are those here who look down on Tetsuya and me, and would leak news of this to the other side to endanger us?"

Haschwalth gave Byakuya a weary look.

"I think you know that in addition to some not appreciating your mixed blood, there are those who no longer trust in the Bach bloodline. For all that they acknowledge we need power to protect our lives, they think that Bach's line is too dangerous, too unpredictable. They prefer laying our hopes on stimulating numbers in our noble clans."

"And given that you were taken by him, held forcibly at his side and made to witness everything that monster thought, sensed and planned, don't you think that maybe they are right and the line should be allowed to die out? After all, even if only one in a hundred years is subject to malformations of that sort, that is once every hundred years the quincies have to fear that another powerful tyrant will be born, is it not?"

"Do you think I would be here if I did feel that way?" Haschwalth asked pointedly, "That I was at his side and, as you say, experienced everything, should put me, of all our people, in the best position to make an informed decision...and my decision is that the shinigamis are too great a danger for us to simply try to regrow our numbers. Kurotsuchi Mayuri may be close to knowing how to invade the shadows, and if he does, we need more power in a shorter time frame to keep our society from being annihilated."

"You know that there is no time for childbearing if that is the case either," Byakuya said in low, angry voice, "What you are not saying is that if I am held here, some of the shinigami leadership may feel sympathy for me and oppose another genocide."

"Byakuya, I know this is hard for you to fathom..."

"No," Byakuya said furiously, "I have no problem understanding you or the actions you are taking. I understand and I respectfully disagree. Unless perhaps you plan to take that right from me as well!"

Haschwalth let out a soft huff of breath, smiling sadly and shaking his head.

"Even though I do have to insist on you undertaking the revival of the Bach bloodline with me, it isn't necessary for you to alter your thinking to suit me. I am not trying to crush your spirits, Byakuya. I appreciate just how strong and how willful you are. Remember, my eyes watched as you defied the fate Ywach prescribed for you at As Nodt's hands. You were slated to die on that battlefield, yet you did not."

"I was not saved by fate," Byakuya said shortly, "but by my king's order."

"Yes," Haschwalth said, moving closer to him and looking deeply into his dark, angry eyes, "Your king saw your value too, didn't he, Byakuya? And even not foreseeing your connection to us, he knew and respected you. He saved you because you and the others were keys in the battle and needed to be there. That much, he knew. And likewise, Ywach knew he had to keep you from being there. That is why he marked you for death and didn't name you a special potential."

Haschwalth sighed softly, looking around the guarded anteroom they stood in

"But all of that aside, what's done is done. You have agreed to bear the necessary heirs and this document seals our marriage. If you wish, we can have a small ceremony."

"That is not necessary," Byakuya said stiffly, "I wouldn't honestly be able to say any vows. I feel nothing for you, nothing at all, and I could not love, honor or cherish you or anything about this forced marriage."

Haschwalth's eyes closed for a moment and the weary look on his face intensified.

"Very well. Then, we will go to the consummation chamber now."

Byakuya's head bowed and he deflated very slightly.

"As you wish."

"Byakuya," the quincy regent said, laying a hand on his arm, "your highness, you don't need to be deferential to me any longer. As soon as the heirs are conceived, I am relieved of responsibility for controlling you. You will have your own quarters and you may choose not to share that space with me. I am your consort and subject to your will."

"As long as it is not my will to leave the shadows and go home."

"Yes, as long as it is not that," Haschwalth agreed.

"Then, let us go and get this over with," Byakuya said tersely, "The sooner you are out of my sight, the better."

Haschwalth's eyes registered a moment of quiet pain, then cleared quickly.

"This way, your highness."

He led Byakuya past the guards at the anteroom's entrance and back into the main meeting chamber, which stood empty. They crossed the room without speaking and exited on the far side, passing another set of guards, whose heads bowed as they passed. They started down the longer corridor that led back to the living areas, Byakuya with his head still bowed and his eyes nearly closed. Haschwalth's head turned to allow him to speak to the piqued prince again, but he caught sight of an odd movement back where the guards stood and turned back suddenly, drawing his sword and flinging it forcefully as one of the guards shoved the other aside and took aim on Byakuya with his bow.

Byakuya turned back just in time to see Haschwalth's sword fly across the distance between them to impale the quincy guard's heart, making the man loose a sound of agony as he dropped to his knees, grabbing at the blade in his chest. Byakuya moved towards the man, ignoring Haschwalth's instant objection, stopping in front of him as the second guard dropped down beside the man, yanking the sword free, then holding him as he collapsed completely.

"Y-you're the d-devil," the dying guard panted, glaring up at Byakuya, "Ywach was a demon. You sh-should have let his bloodline d-die!"

Byakuya knelt in front of the two guards, the blood of the dying man soaking into his robes as he met the guard's eyes sadly.

"I understand," he said softly, "Thank you for trying to give me a merciful death."

The dying quincy's eyes registered surprise, then slowly glazed over as the guard holding him stared down at him wordlessly, tears streaming down his face.

"He was your friend?" Byakuya asked quietly.

"He was my brother," the guard whispered, "Our father was in an elite unit of Ywach's guard that was sacrificed in the Auswhalen while he was in the royal realm. My brother and I weren't powerful enough yet to be of any use in the Auswhalen, so we were spared. It was my brother's idea to become guards. We were growing in strength and wanted to help. I...didn't know he would do something like this. But when our father died, he started holding everything in. Your highness, he wasn't a bad person."

"No," Byakuya said gently, "he was a son who lost his father. I know. I lost my father as well."

He paused, vaguely aware that Haschwalth stood behind him, his weapon back in hand, but for the moment, lowered.

"Take your brother and have the palace attendants prepare him for burial. You should inform your family of what happened. Go on."

The quincy guard looked back at him wordlessly.

"What's wrong?" Byakuya asked, looking into his eyes.

"Shouldn't I be arrested? My brother just tried to kill you!" the young man exclaimed.

"Do you want to kill me as well?" Byakuya asked, still looking steadily into his eyes, "I am a warrior, and I know how a man looks when he wishes to kill someone. You don't have that look in your eyes. You mourn your brother, but you don't agree that I should die. Is that not right?"

"Yes, you are right, your highness," the quincy answered softly, looking down at his brother's face, "I hated Ywach for killing our father, but just because he was evil...it doesn't make you evil. I am looking into your eyes and you don't have the eyes of a wicked man."

"I am a prisoner," Byakuya said, standing and turning away from him, "but fortunately, I am a prisoner given some choices. And I choose to free you. Go."

"Thank you, your highness," the guard answered gratefully, standing and lifting his brother's body into his arms, "Please forgive my brother."

"It is done."

Haschwalth fell in with Byakuya, leaving the guard behind and heading for the royal bedrooms. Byakuya gave the regent a curious look as he stopped them outside Haschwalth's quarters.

"What are you doing?" Byakuya asked, "I thought that..."

"You are covered in blood," Haschwalth answered, "You can shower in here before we go on. I will go and bring your clothing for the consummation."

Byakuya followed him past the guards at the door and inside.

"I am placing a barrier around the room to protect you until I get back," the regent explained, "You have not learned how to use your blut or bow as yet, so you are more vulnerable if there should be another incident."

Byakuya crossed the room and stepped into the bathroom, then began to undress, his fingers trembling slightly as they worked to free his body from the bloodied robes. He let his clothes fall to the floor and moved to the shower, his mind working quickly to relieve him of the emotions brought on by the violence of the conflict.

_This is not the first time I've watched someone die and it won't be the last. It only struck harder because I sympathize with the man who tried to kill me. I am not desperate enough to want to die, but I do understand those wanting Ywach's bloodline to end. The quincies were damaged badly by him, and that makes their feelings about this mixed and sometimes violent._

Byakuya let the water warm, then stepped in under the hot spray, letting the slight sting of it carry him further from what had happened. His eyes closed and he didn't watch as the guard's blood that had leaked through to his skin slowly freed itself and slid down to swirl around and go down the drain. His mind wandered and he wasn't sure how long it was before he heard Haschwalth's step in the bathroom and loosed a long sigh.

"Your highness, are you all right?" the regent asked in a respectful tone.

"I am fine," Byakuya said, his voice lifeless.

He turned off the water and stepped out of the shower, showing no reaction as Haschwalth dried his body with a warm, thick towel, then wrapped a silken white yukata around him. They left the bathroom together and Haschwalth slipped a warmer robe around him before the two stepped out into the hallway and continued on together to the consummation room.

"Why is there a separate room for the consummation?" Byakuya asked, "Are there often royal couples in which one or both are resistant?"

"Sometimes," Haschwalth acknowledged, "but your noble families are no different, are they? They too, force some young people into marriages they don't want."

"Yes."

"The separate room is to put us on more even ground, so that neither will feel completely at home."

"You are doing this to make me feel more at ease?"

"Of course. I told you, the point of this isn't to hurt you. We only need to make sure that we are strong enough to survive if the shinigamis attack. The heirs we are making give us hope for our future. We are grateful for your sacrifice."

They stopped outside the door to the consummation room and Haschwalth stepped forward to hold the door open for him. Byakuya felt a little chill go through his body as he stepped into the warmly decorated room and waited quietly while Haschwalth closed the door and set a heavy barrier in place. He listened as his consort's slow steps approached and stopped, and Haschwalth gently removed his thicker robe.

"You may leave your yukata on and just opened," the regent instructed him.

Byakuya reached down and loosed the tie at his waist, then sucked in a surprised breath as a blindfold was set over his eyes.

"What are you...?" he began.

He paused and frowned.

"This isn't..."

"It isn't the one your wore before," Haschwalth's hushed voice breathed into his ear, "This is the one I wore...the one I used to enter your mind."

"And you have placed this on me..." Byakuya whispered, reaching out with curious fingertips that trembled softly as they encountered Haschwalth's blindfolded eyes, "Why are you doing this?"

Shock flooded Byakuya's body from end to end as Haschwalth's warm, mouth found his and the regent lowered him very slowly onto his back on the bed.

"I am forced to take something from you," Haschwalth whispered, "so I offer something in return. Take what you will, my prince. Everything that I am belongs to you."

Byakuya flinched at the touch of the other man's hands that caressed his face and hair, moving unhurriedly as Haschwalth offered him a longer, more passionate kiss and stretched out along his side. Wondering at his behavior, Byakuya focused on the blindfold, willing it to reveal the other man's thinking and motives to him.

_He really is trying to offer what comfort he can._

_He doesn't want to do this to me, but he feels it is the only way._

Byakuya found himself drawn away suddenly, thrown back into the battle in the royal realm, but watching Ywach's fall through Haschwalth's eyes. As the quincy king's body collapsed, for just a moment, it flashed in his mind that night had come. He felt the power of the almighty grip his mind for just a moment and he realized it was probably the last vision he was going to see. One thought rang in his shocked mind, freezing him in place and making him shake all over with consuming terror.

 _What hope is there for the quincies now_? he wondered numbly, a tear leaking from his eye as that final vision began to form.

Haschwalth sucked in a choked breath, unable to fathom what he was seeing as the pale, lovely face of a shinigami noble and taichou resonated powerfully in his mind.

_He knew?_

_He saw it then?_

_He saw...me?_

Byakuya felt Haschwalth's lips as they trailed a line of kisses along the length of his throat and his hands that pushed back the folds of the silk yukata.

_He may not have known about me having quincy blood, but he knew I was important, so when the opportunity suddenly presented itself, he brought me here. And although he did want to know about Central 46's plans and motives, he wanted more to know why I was the vision shown to him as Ywach died._

_He was telling me the truth...about everything. This man doesn't hate me. He doesn't look down on me. In fact, right now, he feels like he holds the only hope of his people in his arms_. 

_This is why he is touching me with what feels like respect._

He felt Haschwalth pause for a moment as his body relaxed and he began to accept the regent's touches more readily. A little moan escaped him as Haschwalth's warm, wet tongue savored an erect nipple, then he ran a line of kisses from Byakuya's chest, over his soft belly, and following the trail of dark hairs that led to his awakening nether region. Byakuya quivered at the first touch and Haschwalth paused and waited silently.

"It's fine," Byakuya said, trying to sound aloof, "Aizen wasn't gentle when he was with me. I am..."

"You are my husband and my prince," Haschwalth said firmly, "I will never disrespect you."

Byakuya's breath caught as Haschwalth's mouth followed up the gentle words with slow, compelling stimulation. And as he tended to Byakuya's alert genitals, he opened his mind to his husband's, exposing every part of his heart and mind and memory as his fingers invaded Byakuya's entrance and slowly prepared the prince for their joining.

Images danced wildly before Byakuya's covered eyes, playing out the story of Haschwalth's past in vibrant color and full of sound. He witnessed the loss of Haschwalth's parents and placement with his abusive uncle, the long years of torment until he had met the young noble, Bazzard Black. He shivered at Ywach's arrival and the torment of sharing the tyrant king's mind.

 _There was no way to hide his thoughts. He was trapped and had no choice but to make the moves he did. Then...when Ichigo slew Ywach and I appeared in that last vision, he_...

Byakuya tore off the blindfold and pulled away from Haschwalth. He knelt on the bed, still panting from the intimate contact and reeling from what he had seen. Haschwalth sat up slowly and removed his blindfold, setting it aside on the nightstand.

"Are you surprised?" Haschwalth asked, "Byakuya, I have never been anything but a prisoner. Now you see, that you are the key to my freedom. I can protect the quincy people, then I can step away and just live. That...is all I ever really wanted to do."

Byakuya looked back at him through stricken eyes, unable to think of a thing to say. Haschwalth gave him a sad smile and touched his face lightly.

"You will never have that luxury, will you?" he mused, "You are a noble there, royalty here. So much is asked of you that isn't fair."

Byakuya continued to look at him wordlessly.

"When this is done, I would like to walk in the gardens with you, look up at the moon and breathe slowly. There is some peace in the small moments of freedom, isn't there? Even for someone who will never be free?"

"You will never be free either," Byakuya said finally, making Haschwalth pause and gaze intently into his eyes, "You say that you can walk away when this is done, but I think you know that more will be asked of you...not the least of which will come from me. You are the only person here who has any idea of my needs. Not just the obvious ones, but the ones that most people miss."

Haschwalth smiled regretfully and nodded.

"I will be here to provide whatever you need, your highness. You know that."

"I do. But let's finish this. With every moment, my heart feels heavier."

"Of course," Haschwalth agreed, coaxing him down onto his back again and kneeling between his parted thighs.

He entered slowly, pausing when he spotted sign of pain in Byakuya's grey eyes and offering soothing kisses and caresses before continuing. When fully engaged, he stopped again, waiting patiently as Byakuya adjusted, then moving experimentally. Byakuya made a soft sigh that sounded like mingled pain and arousal. The next time he moved, Byakuya moved with him, his dark eyes still reflecting a measure of pain, but the sounds that escaped him betraying growing desire. Haschwalth moved his hips faster, bringing a sheen of sweat to their skin and drawing more heated moans from his husband as Byakuya writhed against him, forgetting for a moment that he was a prisoner, that many of his choices were made for him, that some of the most intimate parts of his life had always been scripted for him. There was something about the way Haschwalth touched and held him that didn't feel binding or forced. He knew well he wouldn't have chosen to marry the man on his own, but for some reason, it felt good to know that he was there.

_He will be there, providing the stabilizing infusions and assisting with the children's births._

_Then..._

Haschwalth's thrusting member suddenly found the center of pleasure inside him and stars seemed to burst Byakuya's stunned eyes. His body was jolted, then surrendered to deep shudders of completion. Haschwalth stiffened and loosed his hot release, panting and moaning mindlessly.

_What is this feeling? This connection I feel with him? Does he feel it too?_

Byakuya gasped as Haschwalth pulled free of him and sat up, watching in silence as Byakuya sat up facing him and hastily covering himself. Neither spoke for a long awkward moment, then Haschwalth gave Byakuya a weary look.

"We should sleep," he suggested, "The first mating primes the bearer's body and causes the formation of the spirit chamber, then we will have to mate again several times tonight. If you wish, I can leave and come back after you have rested."

"No," Byakuya said quickly, shuddering at the thought of waiting alone in the room, "I want you to stay."

Before Haschwalth could answer, he pulled the regent's body back down and curled his own around, burying his face in a tumble of long blonde hair.

"It wasn't too painful, was it?" Haschwalth asked quietly.

"No," Byakuya whispered back, "It was fine. I am fine."

"Your highness...Byakuya, I am sorry this had to happen."

Byakuya considered his words carefully.

"It's best to let it go," he said softly, burrowing more deeply into Haschwalth's shoulder, "You've made enough apologies. There is nothing to do but move forward."

"It's good you see that now," Haschwalth answered, running his fingers through the silken strands of raven colored hair, "It will make things more comfortable for both of us."


	8. Morning After

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Byakuya begins to return Haschwalth's affections.

A hard, stinging ache in his lower abdomen and a swell of nausea, brought Byakuya awake suddenly. He groaned into his pillow, opening his eyes and noting by the darkness in the room that it must be just before dawn. He felt an unsettling twinge at finding that he no longer laid in the consummation chamber, but had been moved as he slept to a larger and luxuriously appointed suite. He peered into the distance, spotting the entrance to his private bathroom and stumbled out of the bed, staggering and holding his belly as he made his way to the bathroom. Once inside, he dropped onto his knees in front of the toilet, surrendering the contents of his stomach and seeing spots as his ears rang. He started in surprise as a hand touched his shoulder, then was forced to delay his sharp reaction as another bout of sickness overtook him.

_I suppose I needn't wonder if we were successful. It's probably no surprise the symptoms are fast paced and brutal, considering this is a royal bloodline._

He sat back on his knees, shivering and panting uncomfortably, but shoved the feeling off in favor of addressing the man who was unexpectedly in the bathroom with him.

"Torio! How did you get here?" he managed before turning back to be sick a third time.

He was immediately comforted by the warm, familiar feel of his own attendant's hand rubbing his back and Torio's voice cajoling him.

"Sorry to have startled you, Byakuya-sama. Try to breathe slowly. I will help you back to bed whenever you are ready."

"Were you a-abducted?" he asked unsteadily.

"No Byakuya-sama," Torio assured him, "A quincy appeared to me at Kuchiki Manor, assuring me that you were all right and telling me that you might need me. I willingly decided to come with him."

"Who came to you?" asked Byakuya, settling slightly as Torio washed his sweating face with a cool, wet cloth, then removed the yukata he was wearing and replaced it with a clean, dry one.

"It was your husband, sir."

"Haschwalth?" Byakuya mused, "He endangered himself...to...?"

"I was never in any danger," Haschwalth said from the bathroom doorway, "I used the sun gate, and with your cousin and his horse not patrolling Kuchiki Manor, it was shockingly easy to enter the grounds. I remembered you asking for Torio when you were talking in your sleep and I had seen his face while under the influence of the blindfold. I asked him to come, hoping that his presence here would make you more comfortable while you are required to stay."

Byakuya looked back at Haschwalth silently for a moment, then turned and threw up again.

"Ah," his husband sighed, "I am sorry about that. I had suspected that the powerful Bach reiatsu might bring a faster and more intense onset of symptoms."

"It's fine," Byakuya said, holding his stomach and wincing, "It's to be expected that anything related to that tyrant would make me feel ill."

Haschwalth paused, gazing silently at the pale, graceful hand that Byakuya held over his stomach and feeling a twinge of unexplained sadness.

"Are you only evincing a dislike for our former king, or do you hate our developing child too?" he asked quietly.

Byakuya blinked in surprise at the question and answered reflexively.

"I don't hate our child. A child doesn't have any control over the blood in his veins. That is true of all of us, would you not agree?"

"Of course I agree," Haschwalth answered, frowning and studying him more closely.

_I feel something very different when I look at him knowing our child is inside him. And it's not that the child is Ywach's successor. This is...something else. I wonder if it is because I am connected to the child through blood too. I feel protective of them._

"It's just that it I could understand if your anger over this situation might seep into other areas."

Byakuya's dark eyes met Haschwalth's sternly.

"I would think a person as well acquainted with my inner workings would know that I wouldn't blame a child for the sins of his father or forefathers. Children are innocent, until something steals that innocence away."

Byakuya felt a soft twinge of surprise at how the image that flashed in his mind at the words was one of Haschwalth as a little boy, backing slowly into the corner of a small, ramshackle cabin in the woods and his wicked uncle slowly advancing on him.

"Are you all right?" Haschwalth asked, "You should rest a bit longer before trying to be up and around."

He glanced at Torio.

"Will you bring him some soothing tea? I believe we have some ginger tea where cook showed you before."

"Yes, Haschwalth-sama," Torio said, bowing and exiting the room.

Haschwalth slipped an arm around Byakuya and helped him to his feet, then gently supported some of his weight as Byakuya staggered back to the bed. He felt a powerful quickening of his heart as his hand touched his husband's lower abdomen, and he felt the little presence that was just a tiny cluster of mated reiatsu, but brought a little, heedless smile onto his lips. He quelled the reaction, but continued to feel a deep warmth inside as he helped Byakuya slide in under the covers and adjusted the pillows more comfortably behind him.

"You are more quiet even than usual," Byakuya noticed, "Is something troubling you?"

"Always," Haschwalth sighed, "It's always something."

"Hmm, but the way you were looking at me suggested something else," Byakuya suggested, "I wouldn't worry that you were gaining a conscience about trampling all over my choices. No, this is a natural thing you are feeling...perhaps paternal connection?"

"Why would you be concerned about what I feel?" Haschwalth asked curiously, "It's clear enough you are still angry about being forced to bear our next leader. I am a natural target for that anger."

"I would direct more of my anger at you if, first, I thought it would have some kind of positive effect and secondly, if you were the actual source of the requirement made of me. You were really only the messenger, Jugram."

Haschwalth felt another deep throb in his insides at hearing Byakuya's voice say his name.

 _What is this_?

_That time it wasn't about the baby._

_I felt something for him._

"We should see to the first bonding," Haschwalth said, carefully controlling his tone.

He climbed onto the bed, positioning himself behind Byakuya and wrapping his arms around his husband's slender waist, sliding his hands beneath Byakuya's yukata and resting them on his warm, soft belly. Byakuya accepted the action quietly, holding still and breathing slowly as reiatsu flowed from Haschwalth's hands and into his body. The gentleness and warmth of the other man's touch and the feel of his reiatsu made Byakuya's slightly tensed body relax almost instantly.

"It looks like this is helping," Haschwalth commented.

"It is," Byakuya acknowledged, "Thank you."

Several minutes passed with neither man speaking as Haschwalth continued the gentle infusion. Torio entered the room and set the tea service at their bedside, then bowed briefly and exited the room. As their quiet exchange continued, both men felt a slow, oncoming reaction in their loins. A flush rose on Byakuya's face and throat and he shifted slightly to hide the evidence of his arousal. Haschwalth's hands shook very slightly where they touched him and Byakuya could see the blush on his pale features out of the corner of an averted eye. He waited for the quincy to speak, to do something to acknowledge and dismiss the connection, but Haschwalth remained oddly silent and focused on his hands. He slowly let the reiatsu around his hands fade and took a breath, starting to pull away from Byakuya. He made a sound of surprise as Byakuya moved with him, turning and straddling his body so that neither could deny what was happening.

"Where are you going?" Byakuya asked, looking into his startled eyes, "Don't you think that if you awaken my sexual urges, as my husband, you should feed them?"

He felt a little shiver go through the quincy's body and watched him curiously as Haschwalth paused, recovering himself.

"If you want to be with me sexually, you only need to ask, your highness," he answered finally, the weary look returning to his comely face.

"And what is your inclination?" Byakuya asked, "Are you interested in me at all, or are you only interested in what is inside me right now?"

"You know I am attracted to you," Haschwalth answered, "Were you wanting a personal confession in addition to what you learned from using the blindfold?"

"I don't know," Byakuya said, tracing the blonde man's lips with a warm fingertip, "But it does seem that I feel it more when you say the words, yourself."

"That makes sense," Haschwalth agreed, shifting slightly underneath Byakuya, then flinching as a sharp twinge assaulted his hungry loins.

Byakuya gave him a little nod.

"So, do you wish to be with me sexually, Jugram?" Byakuya asked, "Or would you like me to allow you to leave?"

 _I'm not used to being asked what I want_ , Haschwalth mused, _The only ones who have ever touched me sexually never asked for permission...or if I wanted them to touch me. Sex was just for their pleasure._

Suddenly, a feeling like fear passed through him and his heart began to pound in his chest.

"I think I should go," he said quickly, starting to crawl out from underneath his husband.

To his surprise, Byakuya moved as well, and held him down, then took his lips in a long, warm kiss. A quiver went through Haschwalth and heat flashed on his skin as their kissing deepened and Byakuya's hands opened his yukata. His body relaxed and went still, reflexively. Byakuya's next words stole his breath away.

"Jugram, did your abusers ever feed your sexual desires? Has anyone ever asked you what you wanted?"

Haschwalth couldn't seem to make his lips move to answer.

_No._

_No one ever asked me what I wanted, and if I was pleasured, it was because they chose to pleasure me._

"Do you want me to make love to you?" Byakuya asked, stealing his breath all over again.

"Why would you want to do that?" Haschwalth mused, "Don't you hate me for keeping you here? For...?"

"Were these your personal decisions?" Byakuya asked pointedly, "Or is it that you were only adhering to the laws that require me to stay and bear the Bach heirs?"

Haschwalth's jaw dropped, and he reeled under the influence of another long, heated kiss.

"You and I understand, don't we? We know that we often have to overlook our own feelings and obey laws we have no control over. And we are judged because we act in that way, sometimes against our own wishes. But...this is not a place where we have to do that. Whatever my feelings about being forced to marry you and have the Bach heirs, I have a choice now about what to do."

"And...you want to make love to me?" Haschwalth asked, looking stymied, "Why? I could understand if you wanted to hurt me sexually, after..."

"I don't want to hurt you," Byakuya interjected, "but perhaps my actions will explain it better."

Haschwalth sucked in a surprised breath as Byakuya's mouth teased his blushing earlobe, then trailed soft kisses along the side of his throat, exciting more color on his pale, lovely flesh. His head tilted back to grant access and his eyes closed. A soft moan escaped him as Byakuya's teeth scraped lightly along his flushed neck and he kissed his way along a fine collarbone, then descended slowly, touching also with his hands and making little sounds of contentment.

"You don't have to do this," Haschwalth whispered, his eyes burning beneath the closed lids.

"I know," Byakuya answered, capturing an erect, pink nipple gently in his teeth and teasing it mercilessly with brushes of his soft tongue.

Haschwalth sucked in a deeper breath and his hips rose, seeking friction against his husband's body. He groaned and panted in reaction as he experienced a moment of grinding bliss, then felt Byakuya break away from him to kiss his way down over Haschwalth's slim, soft belly, following the trail of darker blonde hairs down to the part of him that most desired the intimate contact. He wondered if he should pull away as a sliver of guilt touched his insides, then Byakuya's mouth sent that thought spinning away as he began a closer exploration of his husband's flushed nether region.

"Byakuya!" he gasped, blushing fiercely at the desperation in his own voice.

Byakuya answered with long strokes of his tongue and gentle caresses with his fingertips, making Haschwalth moan and pant furiously, shifting his hips as pleasure threatened to overcome him. He felt a light pressure that seemed to ward off complete surrender, but gasped and panted harder as he was held firmly and invading, wetted fingers began to prepare him.

"Byakuya..."

The name escaped his lips more softly, far more wantonly and with a longing he'd never felt with another living soul. He moaned and thrashed more wildly as Byakuya's fingers teased the sensitive nerves inside him, bringing him swiftly to the brink of madness and leaving him struggling just to breathe properly.

_Is this what it feels like then?_

_Is this what it feels like when you begin to fall in love with someone?_

_But_...

Before he could finish the thought, Byakuya's mouth returned to his, and his husband's warm tongue curled around his, as Byakuya began a slow, unhurried entry.

_I thought I should just go along because I felt guilty for taking Byakuya away from his home and forcing myself on him. But this tells me that he accepts that I had no choice, given that my duties required me to take that action. But who would understand that better than someone like him, who has also lived under the weight of responsibility and noble servitude?_

"Are you all right?" Byakuya asked, startling him.

"I'm fine," Haschwalth assured him, "I am just not used to sex being enjoyable."

Byakuya's lips curved upward as Haschwalth realized what he had just said and blushed more brightly.

"I am enjoying this as well," Byakuya answered, sending a deep flicker of intense warmth through Haschwalth's surrendered body as his husband's hips began to move.

Haschwalth couldn't remember a more enchanting moment in all his life than the one that found him lying beneath Kuchiki Byakuya, a man who had more reason to hate him and treat him cruelly than either of the others who had been with him, and receiving the man's honest affections. And he didn't need to be wearing the connective blindfold to know that Byakuya was likewise enthralled. He could feel the warm sweat that coated his pale skin, the tight clench of his fingers and the hard, fast thrust of his hips as he sought their mutual completion.

_This came about for the wrong reasons, but I don't want it to end!_

He turned suddenly and stole the upper position, attacking Byakuya's mouth with voracious kisses, then straightening atop him and grinding hard against him. He felt Byakuya tense and dropped onto his chest, fastening his mouth on his husband's and devouring the deep, passionate sounds he made as his glistening form began to shudder. An explosion of intense heat erupted inside Haschwalth, and with a howl, he surrendered to a delight of warm shivers, loosing his seed onto their bare flesh as he collapsed entirely.

For several minutes, neither man could move, other than to pant heavily and lace their shaking fingers together.

"You didn't have to do that," Haschwalth said, when he could speak again, "It isn't fair what is being required of you. You could have taken that out on me."

"I was taking it out on you...before," Byakuya acknowledged, "I just realized that doing so was pointless, as was trying to escape. And even though I could have hated you reflexively, I had to admit that you weren't the one making those decisions. You were executing them, even against your own desires."

"This makes me redeemable?" Haschwalth asked, smirking.

Byakuya threaded his fingers into the tumbled lengths of blonde hair, pulling his head gently down to a warm shoulder.

"It gives us something profound in common," he corrected his husband.

Haschwalth loosed a long, relieved sigh.

"Are you comfortable now?" he asked in a more relaxed tone.

"Mhmm," Byakuya mumbled sleepily, "I am sure when I wake later, I will be out of sorts again."

Haschwalth took a steadying breath and started to sit up, only to be brought down again and confined on the bed by Byakuya's outstretched body. His husband's feather-soft lips touched his earlobe, bringing an instant blush to the pale skin.

"I prefer waking up with you next to me," Byakuya breathed into his flushed ear, making it burn almost painfully.

"Ah," he managed softly, "Of course...your highness."

Byakuya nipped at his earlobe and made a sound of disapproval.

"Hmm, of course, Byakuya," Haschwalth corrected himself.


	9. True Connections

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tetsuya goes into labor.

Haschwalth woke late at night to soft sounds of discomfort that escaped Byakuya's parted lips as he shifted restlessly in his sleep. His pale eyes reflecting warmth and sympathy, he slid a gentle hand down to caress the noble's growing baby bump.

_The transcendent reiatsu of the royal family is causing the cluster within Byakuya to develop at an accelerated rate. A full quincy would tolerate this more easily, as we are accustomed to drawing in large quantities of powerful reiatsu and shaping it. Byakuya's blut should protect him, but he is not trained in using it efficiently._

Haschwalth pressed his lips to his husband's earlobe, nuzzling and instructing him in how to ease the feeling of pressure inside. He felt a little sad twinge at the slight stiffening in Byakuya's body at the initial sound of his voice, but remained calm as the noble's eyes met his, reflecting first mistrust, then recognition, and finally acceptance.

_The natural barriers that our different societies imprinted on us are hard to overcome. I will not take it personally that it is difficult for Byakuya to trust me. Until very recently, I was his enemy. Now, he sees me as his captor. He has no real reason to trust me. His life has depended on not trusting me or my kind. It will take time for that to change._

He looked quietly into Byakuya's wary eyes for a moment, then stretched out again, along his side, continuing to rub his belly as they drifted back towards sleep.

 _I am grateful that I am allowed this closeness with the ones who will be protectors of our future, both Byakuya and this child he carries. I regret now that I viewed Byakuya's life with such aloofness, merely announcing the fading of his reiatsu as he approached death after our first attack. If I had known when I looked at his photograph before the war and planned his death…had sensed his importance_ …

_But there is no going back. I callously sent soldiers to take his life. Should I ever be forgiven for that? It is true that Ywach had me in his thrall. Does he still? That is something I can't answer. He hated his brother, Tarelle, so much so that he erased the man after killing him. It is lucky for us that he was careless about the details, or Byakuya would not have ever reached adulthood._

"Do you know how my father died?" Byakuya asked suddenly, startling his quincy mate out of his thoughts.

"Bach Tarelle was reported dead by his brother after they quarreled. Tarelle was never seen again after, but a body was never found. We assume that Ywach simply absorbed his life force and he faded."

"I see," Byakuya said softly.

"I am sorry."

"What do you have to be sorry about?" Byakuya inquired wearily, "I barely knew the man. I believe I only met him that once."

"I never met him either," Haschwalth replied, sitting up in the bed, "He had already died by the time Ywach found me."

He examined Byakuya's comely face in the semi-darkness.

"You should get some more rest," he suggested.

"I am a bit hungry," Byakuya said quietly, "I know it is not a proper time, but…"

"You are with child," Haschwalth finished.

He touched a button at their bedside and a moment later, Torio entered the bedroom.

"Will you bring hot green tea and some warm cookies?" he requested.

"Of course, sir," the attendant said, bowing, "I will bring them immediately."

Haschwalth turned to Byakuya, meeting his eyes questioningly.

"Do you need another infusion, your highness?" he asked.

"I think so," Byakuya answered, reaching down to rub the bump on his belly, "I seem to be needing them with greater frequency."

"That is normal," Haschwalth assured him, "The reiatsu matures at an accelerated rate, which makes the side effects stronger. Add to that, the fact you are a shinigami and you are not used to channeling reiatsu the way we do, and it explains your discomfort. I will be sure to remain close to you for the rest of your gestation."

He didn't miss the tormented look that rose on Byakuya's face for a moment at his words.

"What is it?" he asked calmly, "Something troubles you."

Byakuya considered silently for a moment, then let out a long breath.

"I do not know what to do," he whispered, keeping his eyes on the rounded place on his abdomen, "Things are moving so quickly. I had thought to have more time to decide what I will do when the baby or babies are born. After all, if I want to be a part of my own children's lives, I must stay here. I cannot return to my own home or show them where I grew up. Because of my connection to Bach Tarelle, it is as though my shinigami father and my own childhood never existed, but were only lies from the beginning."

Haschwalth gave him a sympathetic look.

"Byakuya, you know that if you wish to have additional children, beyond those required to be our heirs…"

"Do you really think that I could abandon my own children?" Byakuya asked softly, "Any of them?"

Haschwalth gazed back him in silence.

"Understand that once you took me from the shinigamis, once you cast me in this role as the bearer of your future kings, you changed the course of my life. There is no way that you can simply change it back. Once these children come, there is no going home. I have no home. I am as ash on the wind…but a shadow."

"I do wish that you would not look at it that way," Haschwalth said in a wounded tone, "You have a home here, with any children you have, for as long as you wish."

"And what of my promise to lead my shinigami clan? What of my promise to provide heirs to the Kuchiki family? Maybe those things, those people mean nothing to you, but they, not you, have been there every day of my life. I know them and I have cared for and protected them, ever since being named their leader. You would have me disappear and forget them?"

"And what would you go back to?" the quincy regent said sadly, "How would they look at you, once they knew that the blood of the shinigamis' most dreaded enemy ran in your veins, and had been there all along? Could they still see the one who protected them? Byakuya, I know that you want to fault us for discovering this connection you have to us, but…as much as your life in the shinigami world is truth, so is your connection to the quincy world. I might argue that for all of these years, you have been denied knowledge of half of who you are. You grew up knowing Soujun, and it is good that you did. But, what of Tarelle? What of this quincy who your father, Soujun loved? Loved enough to bear a child for him, to protect that child from Ywach's vision? I understand that you mourn what you have left behind, but there are things ahead of you that are worth considering as well. Perhaps you can't go back, but you can move forward with hope in your heart."

Byakuya's eyes closed and he shuddered against the rage of emotions that tortured his insides. His face paled and he laid a hand on his rounded abdomen. He turned away from the quincy regent and ran into the bathroom, where he fell to his knees, retching. Haschwalth remained where he was for a moment, a look of pure agony touching his pale features.

_He is in misery._

_And all I want is to bring him some kind of peace._

_But all my words do is to hurt him!_

His heart aching, he forced his feet to move, carrying him slowly into the bathroom and to Byakuya's side. He knelt silently, laying his hands on Byakuya's round abdomen and infusing the area gently as the noble struggled to shove off the continued feeling of illness.

"Byakuya, I am truly sorry," he whispered with sincerity, "Believe me when I tell you that I wish I could undo this discovery that has hurt you. No one here wants to hurt you."

"You are wrong," Byakuya objected solemnly, "The guard who tried to take my life is not the only one who hates me because of the blood that runs in my veins. Shingami blood, the Bach blood. It does not matter. I will be despised here as well as there. There is no stopping that."

"Try not to think this way," the quincy regent pleaded, focusing more of his reiatsu into Byakuya's belly, "Byakuya, this unease is unsettling your reiatsu as quickly as I can calm it. I am not going to be able to keep your reiatsu stable if this continues. I know that, despite everything, you love our child…"

He paused, staring in surprise as he felt a little flutter under his fingertips, then the touch of a curious, reaching soul, followed swiftly by a second. His eyes rounded and filled with tears and he grabbed Byakuya's hand and pressed it to the area.

"You feel it, don't you?" he managed in a half-sob, "These two souls that need us? Maybe the rest of the world would see our end without regret, but when all else is lost, we will…have just this, will we not? We needn't be alone!"

One pale, shaking hand rose to brush away the devastated tears that had risen in Byakuya's dark, brooding eyes.

"Please don't leave me alone to do this," Haschwalth whispered, pressing his cheek to his stunned husband's, "I can't do this alone! I need you, Byakuya. I know you have thought of my actions as selfish, but…I was only doing as I must, just as you are now. I, of all people, know the struggle of standing between what I wish and what is. All of my life, I have drifted between one man's plans or another's. I never chose anything about my life. But if I have a choice now, I choose this path! I choose to love these children and I choose to love you!"

Byakuya stared back at him wordlessly for several long moments before answering.

"Do you really?" he breathed in agony, "Can you?"

Haschwalth opened his mouth to give his answer, but was halted as an urgent knocking sounded on the outer bedroom door.

"Byakuya-sama!" Torio called through the door urgently, "Byakuya-sama, Tetsuya-san is in labor, sir, and he is asking for you!"

Haschwalth withdrew his hands and lowered his eyes.

"You should go," he said calmly.

Byakuya looked quietly at Haschwalth for a moment, then climbed to his feet and hurried to the door. He opened it to find Torio, looking pale and frightened.

"Is Tetsuya all right?" Byakuya asked quickly.

"He is coping," Torio said anxiously, "but the healers are concerned that his reiatsu is unstable. Kuri-kuri-sama is doing what he can, but…"

"Take me to him, now!"

"Hai, Byakuya-sama!"

Byakuya followed the attendant, barely noticing that Haschwalth was at his side. He hurried into Tetsuya's treatment room, sliding to stop as he reached the bed.

"B-byakuya-sama!" Tetsuya panted, blinking and reaching for his hand as Kuri washed the heavy sweat from his face.

"I am here," Byakuya assured him, joining Kuri at his side, "I am with you, Tetsuya."

"Everything is going to be fine, Tetsu-hana," Kuri said with forced calm, "You are doing fine."

"What can I do to help?" Byakuya asked the quincy healer that was leaning over his cousin.

"You are close to him and you are a quincy," the healer explained, "Shima taichou is providing reiatsu, but Tetsuya's blut is reacting as though it is an intrusion. It will help of you can hold his hand and focus on keeping him very calm."

"I am trying," Tetsuya sobbed, "but I just can't be calm here. I want to be home…w-with Magdelina-san and Aderia-san, in the home I know with my own healer and attendant!"

"I understand, Tetsuya," Byakuya said solemnly, his hand caressing his cousin's and a sliver of reiatsu passing between them, "We all wanted to go home. We all miss the familiarity of that place. But the truth is that it is not the place that makes the home. You know this. It is the people around us."

Haschwalth's eyes widened and he turned and rushed out of the room.

"I am here with you," Byakuya went on, "Kurushimi is here. Torio is here. Renji and Ichigo and Uryu are here."

The Kuchiki leader motioned for the others to move closer.

"I am surrounding Tetsuya with a strand of my reiatsu," he explained, "I need you to do the same."

He watched quietly as the others emitted little strands of reiatsu, letting them float gently around Tetsuya's panting form. Tetsuya's eyes blinked and he shivered at the first touch, then loosed a relieved sigh and began to calm.

"Very good," the aged quincy healer said approvingly, "Keep your breathing slow. It won't be much longer, my boy. You are doing well."

"Thank you, Byakurai," Kuri whispered shakily, "I think I needed the reminder as much as he did."

"None of this is what any of us expected or wanted," Byakuya acknowledged, "It is tempting to give in to the feelings of strangeness and distance. But…the truth is that, despite the fact that we identify most with the shinigami life we grew up in, Tetsuya and I were denied knowledge of our quincy blood. We didn't have the chance to know this ,place or these people. I still do not agree with the method that brought us here, but we do have connections here too. We have to make our peace with that."

"I know this," Kuri breathed softly, "It is not easy for either of you. I wish all of this had happened differently, not when Tetsu-hana was so vulnerable."

"I wish the same," Byakuya agreed, "I…"

He paused and the ones in the room looked up in surprise as the chamber door opened, and Magdelina, Aderia and Urahara Kisuke entered. The three moved swiftly to Tetsuya's side.

"Angelito," Magdelina greeted him smilingly, looking as though she hadn't noticed that they weren't home at Shima Adobe, "Mijo, it is so good to see you!"

"Magdelina-san!" Tetsuya whispered happily, taking the elder woman's hand, "Aderia-san! How did you get here?"

"The quincy appeared to us," Aderia explained, leaning over Tetsuya and adding her reiatsu to the small streams that radiated around him, "Urahara-san had come to give us an update on things. Haschwalth said that you needed us and that Urahara-san might be needed too."

"I feel so much better, now that you are here," Tetsuya said with increasing calm, "I still wish we could go home, but…"

"We will go home, just as soon as it is safe, Tetsu-hana," Kuri assured him.

The door opened again and Torio and Koji entered.

"Koji!" Tetsuya exclaimed, reaching out as his own attendant joined them, "You're here too?"

"Haschwalth-sama came to me and said that you needed me."

Koji turned his attention to Byakuya for a moment.

"Byakuya-sama, when Haschwalth-sama arrived at the manor, there was a minor skirmish and he was injured."

"Haschwalth was…?" Byakuya began, laying a hand on his abdomen and paling.

"He is all right. His personal healer is seeing to his injury. I just wanted you to know."

Byakuya nodded.

"Thank you, Koji."

"Okay folks," Kisuke said, running a hand over Tetsuya's rounded belly, "I think it's time we had these babies, don't you?"

The area just below Tetsuya's navel began to emit a soft glow that slowly brightened.

"Kuri, would you like to deliver your children?" Kisuke asked.

Kuri smiled helplessly and nodded. He rose and joined the shopkeeper and quincy healer, and Kisuke's hands guided his into the glowing area. They curved gently around one thick cluster of reiatsu and very slowly removed it. He set the cluster in Tetsuya's arms and the two watched in awe as the golden reiatsu gradually resolved into a tiny, caramel-skinned infant with Tetsuya's black, misbehaving hair and Kuri's handsome turquoise eyes.

"Oh my god, he's so beautiful!" Kuri exclaimed, tears streaming down his face, "Tetsu-hana!"

"He is amazing!" Tetsuya agreed, smiling widely.

"That's not the end of the show," Kisuke chuckled, "Kuri?"

Kuri met Magdelina's large, damp eyes.

"Mamà, will you please do the honors?" he asked.

"Me?" Magdelina mused, touching a hand to her heart, "Oh, mijo!"

She joined Kisuke at Tetsuya's side and allowed the shopkeeper to guide her hands into the glowing area of Tetsuya's belly. She carefully removed a second golden cluster and everyone watched as it resolved into a pale, brown-haired girl with Tetsuya's large, sapphire eyes.

"Oh, she's so beautiful!" Magdelina exclaimed, "She looks so much like our Angelito!"

"She is an angel, like her mother," Kuri said proudly, "Shall we call her Angèl, Tetsu-hana?"

"I think it's a lovely name," Tetsuya agreed, "and shall we call our son, Akira, as we planned?"

"Yes, yes, it is fitting for him, eh?"

"I think so," Tetsuya agreed.

"How is my cousin?" Byakuya asked Kisuke quietly.

"He's doing fine," the shopkeeper assured him, "He just needs to rest and bond with his babies. I think having everyone here really helped him through. He and the kids are looking good now."

"Thank you," Byakuya said gratefully.

He touched Tetsuya's face lightly.

"Watashi no itoko, I must go and see my husband now," he said solemnly, "I will come to see you again later, when you are well-rested."

Tetsuya nodded.

"P-please thank Haschwalth-sama for bringing my family," Tetsuya requested.

"I will."

Byakuya left the room and walked back through the quiet hallways to his suite, pausing for a moment at the door before he entered. He found Haschwalth alone and sitting up in their bed, looking silently out the open balcony doors.

"Are Tetsuya and the children all right?" the quincy regent asked, "Though, I don't suppose you would be here if they weren't."

"They are fine," Byakuya said, sitting down on the bed and rubbing the enlarged bump on his abdomen gently, "I heard what you did to get the others here…that you allowed yourself to be injured. That was…kind…and careless, Jugram."

"You are right," Haschwalth confessed, "I was careless. I am sorry."

"I am sorry as well," Byakuya apologized, "for my behavior earlier."

"You had every reason to feel despair."

"But I realized as I was helping my cousin, that it is the people who matter. I have been taken from the home I knew and many of the people I knew. I have lost some things. But, I have also gained a truth I need to know. I am to have family here, as well. That must be enough to mitigate my feelings about not being able to go back home."

"You can't help feeling detached from family you never knew."

"But it is best that I come to know all of myself," Byakuya resolved, lying down and curling into his husband's arms, "I will try harder to do so."

"Danke dir meine Liebe für dein Verständnis. (Thank you, my love, for your understanding)."

"Bitte schön. (You are welcome)"

"You have begun to learn our language," Haschwalth mused, looking pleased.

"No," Byakuya corrected him, "I am remembering it. You see, my father, Soujun, made sure it was a part of my historical education to learn multiple languages, and this is one of them."

Haschwalth smiled.

"Soujun was an amazing person."

"I find more about how amazing he was every day," Byakuya whispered, closing his eyes and resting his head on his husband's shoulder.


End file.
